Blaney Survives Wall Contact to Win Overtime Thriller at Atlanta

HAMPTON, Ga. — A late brush with the wall didn’t force Ryan Blaney into the pits, and the decision paid off with a commanding victory.

Blaney emerged from a three‑wide battle on the final lap of overtime in the weather‑delayed NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta early Monday.

Starting from pole, the Team Penske Ford driver won every stage and led 171 laps, but had to fend off challenges from Bubba Wallace and Christopher Hill, who finished second. Carson Hocevar and Ty Gibbs completed the top‑four.

Wallace was penalized for passing below the double yellow lines and dropped to 29th.

A rain and lightning delay lasting 3 hours 9 minutes pushed the race’s finish to 1:45 a.m. at EchoPark Speedway.

Blaney brushed the wall with 29 laps remaining after being cut off by Wallace, sustaining possible damage to the right side. He stayed on track despite reporting a “terrible” vibration.

“I tried to make a move, got loose and hit the fence,” Blaney said. “It was probably concrete and paint on the wheels, but the car still drove decent. It wasn’t enough damage to retire.”

Crew chief Jonathan Hassler reviewed photos of the car’s right side and decided the best chance was to stay out, noting there were 30 cars on the lead lap with few laps left.

Multiple drivers, including Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe and Riley Herbst, were involved in a wreck with five laps remaining, setting up the overtime finish.

Approaching rain and lightning prompted officials to call a caution and ask fans to leave the grandstands. After additional caution laps and pit stops, green flag racing resumed at 12:02 a.m.

During the delay, Blaney said he “took a nap and ate a little food.” Larson joked that the race’s midnight restart was “definitely past my bedtime.”

Blaney won the pole, with teammate Joey Logano on the front row and Austin Cindric moving up to third early for a strong Team Penske showing.

Cup Series points leader Denny Hamlin, who qualified 28th, finished 12th. Tyler Reddick came home eighth after starting 31st.

Reddick, who captured a win at EchoPark Speedway in February as part of a five‑win streak early in the season, had already climbed to fourth by lap 35, indicating his continued presence at the front.

Clean start

The weather delay was the first cause‑related caution of the race, a notable shift from the previous weekend’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series event, which featured a track‑record 13 cautions and four red flags.

The first Cup Series caution came when AJ Allmendinger lost control with 67 laps to go, followed by a blown tire and wall contact with 25 laps remaining.

Design to Drive

This marked Chase Elliott’s 10th year of the Design to Drive program supporting Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. He credited the baseball‑themed livery on his No. 9 Chevrolet to two young patients, Maximus Peace (8) and Noelle Springer (9). The program has raised $545,500 for the hospital in its first nine years. Elliott finished 13th.

Another strong start for Team Penske

Blaney’s Stage 1 win continued Team Penske’s dominance at Atlanta, with Penske drivers winning Stage 1 in six of the last eight races at the track.

He held off Reddick, who finished second in the first stage after qualifying 31st.

Up next

The Cup Series heads to North Wilkesboro, NC, next weekend. Christopher Bell edged Joey Logano at North Wilkesboro Speedway in the NASCAR All‑Star Race on May 18, 2025.

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