Ryan Blaney Clinches Thrilling NASCAR Cup Win at Nashville

Ryan Blaney delivered a standout performance at Nashville Superspeedway, earning his first NASCAR Cup Series win of the 2025 season for Team Penske. Blaney was fast all race, piloting his No. 12 Ford to the front and leading 139 of 300 laps.

With this victory, the 2023 series champion officially secured a spot in the playoffs, becoming the ninth different winner this season. Blaney took control of the race using smart pit strategy, opting for two fresh tires at the stage break while rivals made different calls.

This move helped him gain track position and stay ahead during crucial green-flag pit cycles late in the race. Carson Hocevar finished second, tying his best-ever Cup result, thanks to an early final green-flag stop that let him make up ground.

Denny Hamlin was third after claiming the Stage 1 win, followed by Joey Logano, last year’s Nashville winner, and William Byron to round out the top five. Bubba Wallace, Erik Jones, Kyle Larson, Tyler Reddick, and Christopher Bell completed the top ten.

The early part of the race saw Joe Gibbs Racing setting the pace, with polesitter Chase Briscoe and then Hamlin leading an incident-free Stage 1. Blaney gained important positions by running long before his first pit stop.

Stage 2 became more chaotic as drivers found it hard to pass and aggression built. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. suffered his first DNF of the year after contact with Hocevar, and Alex Bowman was caught up in a crash with Noah Gragson.

Several yellow flags slowed the action before the final stage, including a spin from Christopher Bell and an incident that ended Corey Heim’s day. The final third of the race was much smoother, with only a single spin for Ryan Preece.

Pit stops in the last 70 laps shuffled the order, with Jones leading the cycle at first before Blaney and then Hamlin completed their stops. Hocevar took advantage of an early pit call to move into second position and began to cut into Blaney’s advantage. This strategy echoes discussions around pit stop rules used in other racing series.

However, traffic kept Hocevar from closing the gap, and Blaney managed his lead to the checkered flag. Ross Chastain, winner of the previous week’s Coca-Cola 600, slipped out of the top ten late and ended up 11th.

Several drivers struggled to find speed or got caught up in incidents, but Blaney’s pace put him clear of most trouble. He now counts 14 career NASCAR Cup wins, all with Team Penske.

The next Cup Series event is set for Michigan International Speedway on June 8. Tyler Reddick won at Michigan last year.

As the season continues, fans and teams are already watching closely to see if Blaney’s Nashville success signals a strong run toward another series title. Parallel to NASCAR’s race strategies, innovations such as the flexi wing concept are influencing motorsport aerodynamic discussions.

Daniel Miller

Daniel Miller reports on Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends with race-day analysis, team-radio highlights, and point-standings updates. He explains power-unit upgrades, aerodynamic developments, and driver rivalries in straightforward, SEO-friendly language for a global F1 audience.