{"id":54669,"date":"2025-09-21T17:45:59","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T22:45:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=54669"},"modified":"2025-09-22T09:21:17","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T14:21:17","slug":"ryan-blaney-wins-round-of-12-playoff-opener-at-new-hampshire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/21\/ryan-blaney-wins-round-of-12-playoff-opener-at-new-hampshire\/","title":{"rendered":"Ryan Blaney wins Round of 12 Playoff opener at New Hampshire"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards\/Libman Ford, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Sean Gardner\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service<\/em><\/p>\n

LOUDON, N.H. \u2013 Team Penske Fords were fast in practice, fast in qualifying and fastest in the Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when it counted Sunday afternoon with Ryan Blaney taking a .937-second victory over fellow Ford driver Josh Berry in the opening race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs\u2019 Round of 12.<\/p>\n

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Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards\/Libman Ford, takes the checkered flag to win the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Meg Oliphant\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

It marked a distinct competitive turn in this year\u2019s championship with three Fords finishing among the top-five and three Chevrolets among the top-eight at the one-mile New Hampshire track after a Toyota sweep of the Playoffs\u2019 opening three-race round.<\/p>\n

Blaney\u2019s No. 12 Team Penske Ford \u2013 which started on the outside of the front row – led 116 of the race\u2019s 301 laps including the final 39 laps holding off the Wood Brothers Racing driver Berry, who had rallied back in his No. 21 Ford after a spin on Lap 21.<\/p>\n

\u201cProbably the hardest 20 laps I drove,” Blaney, 31, said of the race\u2019s closing laps. \u201cWas trying to bide my stuff and he [Berry] really started coming. He started to get super free and it was all I could do to hold him off. It was good racing. Clean racing and I appreciate Josh not throwing me the bumper when he could have.”<\/p>\n

\"\"

Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards\/Libman Ford, drives as fans cheer after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Sean Gardner\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Blaney\u2019s victory cashes the popular 2023 series champion\u2019s ticket into the Round of 8 in pursuit of his second NASCAR Cup Series title. Important both Sunday and likely further in the Playoffs as the season\u2019s three-race winner can expect fierce competition from his Penske teammate, three-time and reigning series champ Joey Logano as the Playoffs intensify.<\/p>\n

The two were quickest throughout preparation for Sunday\u2019s race and maintained that edge throughout the day \u2013 combining to lead 263 of the 301 laps.<\/p>\n

The pole-winner Logano led the most laps (147) and finished fourth. He crossed the line just behind another Playoff-eligible driver, Hendrick Motorsports William Byron, whose teammate Chase Elliott turned in an inspiring comeback performance with a fifth-place showing after a 27th-place starting position.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards\/Libman Ford, poses with Loudon the Lobster in victory lane after winning the the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Sean Gardner\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cWe ran well, we just weren\u2019t the fastest car,” Logano said. \u201cThe 12 [Blaney] was fastest in practice and he showed that again in the race. Our only chance to beat him was on pit road and beat him on details. But they were able to make up their track position when they put four [tires] on. That last restart I could have started behind him and finished third in the race, but if I was behind the 12 [Blaney] I wasn\u2019t going to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

It perhaps marked a significant turn in competition \u2013 early in this round, at least \u2013 with the top Toyota driver, the race\u2019s defending winner Christopher Bell leading that manufacturer with a sixth-place finish Sunday. He won just a week ago capping a three-race Toyota winning sweep in the opening Playoff series.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards\/Libman Ford, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Sean Gardner\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Playoff driver, Hendrick\u2019s Kyle Larson was seventh, followed by Spire Motorsports\u2019 Michael McDowell and Playoff drivers Ross Chastain (Trackhouse Racing) and Chase Briscoe (Joe Gibbs Racing).<\/p>\n

JGR\u2019s veteran driver Denny Hamlin, who ran top-10 most of the day, and was involved in an incident with his teammate Ty Gibbs mid-race, dropped from the championship lead coming into New Hampshire to now fifth place in the points with a 12th place run. The season\u2019s five-race winner had no comment, however, about the contact with Gibbs that put the young third-year driver into the wall and out of the race while they both raced among the top-10.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, leads the field to the green flag to start the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Meg Oliphant\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

Blaney\u2019s victory \u2013 the 16th of his career – automatically moves him into the next round of the Playoffs. Byron is now second in the standings, 47 points above the cutoff line. Larson is 41 points up and Bell is 29 points to the good.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Penske cars were super-fast, kind of in another zip code,” said Byron, who\u2019s third-place finish marks his first career top-10 showing in eight New Hampshire races.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can just build on this, all our short tracks are coming together,” said Byron. \u201cIt\u2019s no breathing room because you have to go out there and execute every week and keep your foot on the gas in this deal. But hopefully we can go to Kansas and be up front contending for a win.<\/p>\n

\"\"

A general view of Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards\/Libman Ford, leading the field during the NASCAR Cup Series Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on September 21, 2025 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Meg Oliphant\/Getty Images)<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201c\u2026Definitely wasn\u2019t expecting to be this strong here, so hopefully we can to Kansas and be really good.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Hamlin is now fifth in the standings with a 24-point cushion on the elimination line, followed by Logano (plus-24), Elliott (plus-14), and Briscoe who holds a 12-point advantage over Chastain for the eighth and final Playoff position to advance following the Kansas race next week and the Charlotte ROVAL race in two weeks.<\/p>\n

Team Penske\u2019s Austin Cindric (minus-19) and 23XI Racing teammates Tyler Reddick (minus-23) and Bubba Wallace (minus-23) are also below the Playoff line heading to Kansas. Cindric finished 17th Sunday, Reddick was 21st and Wallace was 26th.<\/p>\n

The Cup Series moves to the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway for Sunday\u2019s Hollywood Casino 400 (3 p.m. ET on USA Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Chastain is the defending race winner.<\/p>\n

NASCAR Cup Series Race – Mobil 1 301<\/b><\/p>\n

New Hampshire Motor Speedway<\/b><\/p>\n

Loudon, New Hampshire<\/b><\/p>\n

Sunday, September 21, 2025<\/b><\/p>\n

                1. (2)  Ryan Blaney (P), Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                2. (3)  Josh Berry, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                3. (5)  William Byron (P), Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                4. (1)  Joey Logano (P), Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                5. (27)  Chase Elliott (P), Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                6. (19)  Christopher Bell (P), Toyota, 301.<\/p>\n

                7. (16)  Kyle Larson (P), Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                8. (11)  Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                9. (8)  Ross Chastain (P), Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                10. (18)  Chase Briscoe (P), Toyota, 301.<\/p>\n

                11. (6)  Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                12. (9)  Denny Hamlin (P), Toyota, 301.<\/p>\n

                13. (28)  Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                14. (23)  Ryan Preece, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                15. (7)  Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                16. (33)  Noah Gragson, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                17. (22)  Austin Cindric (P), Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                18. (15)  Chris Buescher, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                19. (36)  Todd Gilliland, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                20. (12)  AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 301.<\/p>\n

                21. (4)  Tyler Reddick (P), Toyota, 301.<\/p>\n

                22. (25)  Riley Herbst #, Toyota, 301.<\/p>\n

                23. (17)  Brad Keselowski, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                24. (31)  Cole Custer, Ford, 301.<\/p>\n

                25. (34)  Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet, 300.<\/p>\n

                26. (14)  Bubba Wallace (P), Toyota, 300.<\/p>\n

                27. (20)  Zane Smith, Ford, 300.<\/p>\n

                28. (26)  Erik Jones, Toyota, 300.<\/p>\n

                29. (30)  Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 300.<\/p>\n

                30. (24)  Kyle Busch, Chevrolet, 297.<\/p>\n

                31. (35)  Cody Ware, Ford, 296.<\/p>\n

                32. (10)  Shane Van Gisbergen #, Chevrolet, 250.<\/p>\n

                33. (21)  Justin Haley, Chevrolet, 207.<\/p>\n

                34. (29)  John Hunter Nemechek, Toyota, Accident, 146.<\/p>\n

                35. (13)  Ty Gibbs, Toyota, Accident, 134.<\/p>\n

                36. (32)  Daniel Suarez, Chevrolet, Accident, 117.<\/p>\n

Average Speed of Race Winner:  101.699 mph.<\/p>\n

Time of Race:  3 Hrs, 7 Mins, 53 Secs. Margin of Victory:  .937 Seconds.<\/p>\n

Caution Flags:  8 for 45 laps.<\/p>\n

Lead Changes:  14 among 7 drivers.<\/p>\n

Lap Leaders:   J. Logano (P) 1-52;R. Blaney (P) 53-113;C. Ware 114;C. Briscoe (P) 115-133;K. Larson (P) 134-137;J. Logano (P) 138-188;C. Ware 189;J. Logano (P) 190-227;R. Blaney (P) 228-231;J. Logano (P) 232-237;J. Berry 238-240;C. Elliott (P) 241-243;R. Blaney (P) 244-255;J. Berry 256-262;R. Blaney (P) 263-301.<\/p>\n

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  Joey Logano (P) 4 times for 147 laps; Ryan Blaney (P) 4 times for 116 laps; Chase Briscoe (P) 1 time for 19 laps; Josh Berry 2 times for 10 laps; Kyle Larson (P) 1 time for 4 laps; Chase Elliott (P) 1 time for 3 laps; Cody Ware 2 times for 2 laps.<\/p>\n

Stage #1 Top Ten: 12,22,24,21,77,5,88,48,45,71<\/p>\n

Stage #2 Top Ten: 22,5,24,12,77,20,9,11,19,21<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service LOUDON, N.H. \u2013 Team Penske Fords were fast in practice, fast in qualifying and fastest in the Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway when it counted Sunday afternoon with Ryan Blaney taking a .937-second victory over fellow Ford driver Josh Berry in the opening race of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":676,"featured_media":54694,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[11],"tags":[16,466,435],"class_list":["post-54669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nascar","tag-nascar","tag-new-hampshire-motor-speedway","tag-ryan-blaney"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2236627546-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1670&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-edL","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54669","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/676"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54669"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54669\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54705,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54669\/revisions\/54705"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54694"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}