"Now we’re even, I guess": Ryan Blaney on his back and forth with Ross Chastain

Ryan Blaney began Sunday’s Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway from the pole and maintained the lead in the first 128 laps of the race.

Earlier in the race, Blaney had a couple of run-ins with EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix winner Ross Chastain, having been moved by the latter's #1 Chevrolet Camaro in the corner. During the post-race interview, speaking about his back-and-forth with Chastain, Blaney said:

“I was inside of him into three and I kind of got loose and washed up half a lane and we never touched. I went down into one and he just decided to send me, so the next restart I sent him, so now we’re even, I guess.”

Further, Ryan Blaney spoke about his improved performance at Richmond, saying:

“I don’t know. It’s kind of hard to tell. Like this new car; does it suit me better here? I don’t know. I think it’s a little bit of everything – a little bit of car, a little bit of me just trying to figure out what the heck I need to do here to run better. I still have a lot of figuring out to do, but I think it’s a little bit of everything – car, us working on figuring out what we need to do to kind of hang on here and me studying some stuff, so it’s all kind of all in one.”

His seventh-place finish was his career's best at the 0.75-mile-long track, where he has endured several poor finishes, failing to finish in the top 15 in his first nine starts. The driver of the #12 Ford Mustang, however, finished 11th, 10th, and 7th in the last three races.

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Ryan Blaney began Toyota Owners 400 with third consecutive pole of the season

On Saturday, Ryan Blaney secured his third pole of the season, posting the fastest lap with a speed of 119.782 mph and outrunning Byron in the qualifying race. It was also his second consecutive race rolling off the front of the grid after winning the pole at the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix.

With Sunday’s 7th place finish, Blaney took over the top spot in the Cup Series points table. He had 241 points with two top-5, but he is yet to secure a victory in the 2022 season.

NASCAR returns next weekend for the Blue-Emu Maximum Pain relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia, and the green flag will drop on Sunday at 7:30 pm ET.