Nothing could stop Ryan Blaney on Sunday in the Arizona desert.
The Team Penske driver overcame two loose wheels after pit service and denied Tyler Reddick of a chance for a NASCAR record-setting fourth straight victory to open a season, winning the Straight Talk Wireless 500 over Christopher Bell at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale.
After a track-record-tying 12th caution, Blaney, who made a late two-tire stop, started second to Ty Gibbs on a 12-lap sprint, but he maneuvered his No. 12 Ford under the Joe Gibbs Racing driver, who was seeking his first Cup Series win.
Blaney, the 2023 Cup champion, led 28 laps overall and held off Bell, on four tires, by 0.399 seconds for his 18th career win.
Kyle Larson, Gibbs and Denny Hamlin completed the top five.
“Just perseverance. Everybody on the 12 group persevered all day,” said Blaney after his second Phoenix victory. “We had a couple of mistakes that we’ll learn from and get better. We had to come from the back a couple of times.”
The call for a two-tire stop by Blaney’s crew chief Jonathan Hassler turned out to be the winning one in the end.
“Honestly, the 20 (Bell) was the best car, but Jonathan made a great call to take two, we were able to get the lead and just hold him off,” Blaney said. “I don’t know how many more laps we could have held off (Bell).”
Gibbs fell short and is 0-for-127 in his Cup career.
“That’s unfortunate,” said the 23-year-old grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs. “I think I could have done some things better there. Very happy with my team. I’m with the right guys.”
Bell led a race-high 176 laps, while Ford won for the third time in the past four Phoenix races.
Seeking his fourth straight win, Reddick came home eighth in his No. 45 Toyota.
Polesitter Joey Logano and Team Penske teammates Blaney and Austin Cindric ran 1-2-3 until Blaney’s Ford rolled the center better than Logano’s No. 22 in a gaggle of cars and took the lead for the first time.
Stage 1 ended with Blaney taking the checkers followed by Bell, Logano, Reddick and Hamlin.
Kyle Busch and Shane van Gisbergen had issues on Lap 93 for the second caution. Daniel Suarez and Chase Elliott had trouble together on Lap 104.
Hindered by a tire vibration, third-place Chase Briscoe’s right tire blew out seven circuits after passing Reddick on Lap 125 and smacked the wall for the fourth yellow.
Tires became even more of an issue on Lap 158 as Noah Gragson’s No. 4 Ford, William Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet, Connor Zilisch’s No. 88 Chevrolet and Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Chevrolet all experienced rubber failure.
Hamlin — who did not take two tires while leading late in the Championship Race last November and lost the title to Larson — did so this time on the ensuing pit stop and easily moved to the front. Howver, Bell won Stage 2 with Hamlin, Logano, Chris Buescher and Bubba Wallace behind.
Logano spun Ross Chastain to create the race’s hardest hit, Cindric’s No. 2 Ford, on Lap 217.
Contact with AJ Allmendinger ended Logano’s day on Lap 254, and Elliott, van Gisbergen and Josh Berry were among those receiving damage.
–Field Level Media
