“They love to try to make you lift”: Ryan Blaney on Kyle Larson & Denny Hamlin’s racing styles

The defending NASCAR Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney recently opened up about the racing styles of his two championship contenders, Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin, revealing why he finds it tough to race against them. These three drivers are in great form this season, with multiple wins already.

Blaney spoke to The Athletics’ Jeff Gluck about how each driver develops specific tactics and tendencies that become recognizable over time while racing with them.

The #12 Ford driver explained that to gain an advantage, veteran drivers like Hamlin and Larson put drivers in difficult situations, making them lift by shoving and pushing on the track.

Discussing Larson & Hamlin’s racing styles, here’s what Ryan Blaney said:

“Everyone has their tendencies when you’re racing them. You learn that when you run against these guys for a long time. Do they like to put you in bad situations, trying to make you lift? Like Denny and Larson, they love to try to make you lift. It’s not a bad thing, but they do like taking a lot of space.”

Blaney continued:

“Like, if they’re on the inside, they like to do the shove-it-in-there-and-push-you-up-the-racetrack and try to put you in a tight spot.”

Both Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin are known to be hard racers that often involve putting pressure on others to make them back off during races.

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Ryan Blaney admits he enjoys racing with Kyle Larson & Denny Hamlin

Despite knowing that Hamlin and Larson exploit his weak link to their advantage on the racetrack, the Team Penske driver loves racing against because of their on-track success.

Further in the interview, Ryan Blaney admitted he loves racing against the duo and revealed how he prepares if one of them is lined up alongside him. Blaney said:

“I wouldn’t say I don’t enjoy it; I love racing with those guys, because they are great racers. But if I do have a restart next to those guys, that’s in the back of my head: ‘Oh, they might take a lot of space and I just have to be ready for that.'”

Coming to their performances in 2024, these three drivers look like a genuine NASCAR Cup Series championship contender and currently stand inside the top-five in the points table. It will be interesting to see how these drivers perform in the postseason.