Ryan Blaney: NASCAR Cup playoffs 2025 preview

After coming so close to repeating as NASCAR Cup Series champion in 2024, Ryan Blaney’s 2025 season hasn’t been as straightforward. 

This season for Ryan Blaney has been extremely streaky as far as finishes go. After starting the season with two top-10 finishes, he went on a five-race stretch without a single top-10. Multiple engine failures during that stretch contributed, as Blaney then got back on track with four top-five finishes in five races. 

Shortly thereafter, Blaney secured his first win of the season at Nashville Superspeedway. The victory didn’t come as a shock to many as the No. 12 car had been the best at passing on intermediate tracks in the NASCAR Cup Series. 

After the Nashville win, it was back to the struggle bus for Blaney. In the next six races, he only saw the Top-10 once — third at Pocono. The argument for this poor streak could be a portion of the schedule dominated by road courses, which Blaney tends to struggle with.  

Since Sonoma, the No. 12 car has been fantastic. He finished inside the top-10 in all five races since. 

While finishes have been streaky, it isn’t exactly indicative of how well the car has run over the season. When you break down his points by what he’s earned in the stages, without including his finishing points, he’s collected 229, second only to William Byron at 247. 

This stat shouldn’t come as a surprise. The story of both drivers’ seasons has been running well and not getting the appropriate finish. It also shows in the stage win column.

Where Blaney has the third-most stage wins, at six, his 16 playoff points from wins and stage wins lagged behind others. 

In reality, teams have to perform in the playoffs. Period. The playoff points only matter to an extent but compared to the rest of the playoff field, Blaney is in a great spot. 

In recent years, Blaney has mentioned how well the playoffs set up for him as far as tracks go. That sentiment remains this year, with good tracks for the No.12 team scattered everywhere. 

Darlington, Gateway and Bristol make up the Round of 16 where, barring a major disaster, Blaney should make it through fine. At Gateway last season, Blaney ran out of gas on the final lap, allowing his teammate, Austin Cindric, to steal the win. 

New Hampshire, Kansas and the Charlotte Roval are featured in the Round of 12. A short flat oval and a high speed intermediate are Blaney’s strongsuits. While road courses are not his specialty, he does have a win at the Roval, albeit with unique circumstances. 

Finally, the Round of 8, where Las Vegas, Talladega and Martinsville loom. Engraved in fans’ memories will be Blaney’s monster drives at Martinsville the past two seasons, where he won his way into the Championship 4 both times. Las Vegas hasn’t been as kind to him but three wins at Talladega should give Blaney a lot of confidence as the stakes rise. 

If Blaney is able to make it to the Championship 4, it will be his third consecutive appearance. History suggests that, if Penske gets into the Phoenix finale with a shot, it’s usually over before the green flag drops. Time will tell if the sentiment will continue in 2025.