Blaney Wins Martinsville for Chance at Consecutive Championships
(MARTINSVILLE, VA – NOV 3, 2024 – RIS) Ryan Blaney headed only 32 of the 500 laps at Martinsville Speedway’s Xfinity 500, but led the final fifteen before earning his second grandfather clock for winning the Fall race at the ‘paperclip.’ Christopher Bell gained one finishing position on the final lap, potentially bumping William Byron out of the Championship Four, but his move around a slowing Bubba Wallace sent the No. 20 Toyota into the wall and he bounced along it, similar to Ross Chastain’s move a couple of years ago. After long deliberation, including listening to radio transmissions and looking at multiple video angles, NASCAR ruled that he had committed a safety violation, leaving Byron as fourth driver eligible for the Cup championship.
The four drivers eligible for the championship next weekend, in order of points are:
1) Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
2) Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
3) Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
4) William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
A lost right-front wheel from Kyle Busch’s car on a restart could have changed the outcome of the race with Blaney livid after losing positions on the immediate caution after he had advanced on the green.
Late in the race, Tyler Reddick pulled into the pits with no brakes and a fire under the hood, barely missing a couple of his crew with the
Bell passed a slowing Bubba Wallace for position on the last lap but bounced off the wall a couple of times, much like Ross Chastain did last year, but without riding along the wall. The finish lap got reviewed carefully by NASCAR as the gained position would have moved Bell into the Championship Four going into Phoenix at the expense of William Byron. “I had no intention of riding the wall,” said Bell. After extensive investigation, NASCAR ruled the move a safety violation and awarded the fourth position going into the championship weekend at Phoenix.
Blaney said he “tried to save my rear tires early – it kind of paid off for us,” following the race.
Unofficial Results: XFINITY 500, November 3, 2024 - Martinsville Speedway
Fin, Str, Driver, Car, Laps, St1, Sta2, Tms Led, Laps Led, Playoff Pts, Pts, Status
1) 14, Ryan Blaney (P), No. 12 Discount Tire Ford, 500, 5, 3, 32, 5, 2, 55, Running
2) 2, Chase Elliott (P), No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, 500, 1, 5, 129, 1, , 45, Running
3) 9, Kyle Larson (P), No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, 500, 6, 1, 71, , 4, 46, Running
4) 24, Austin Cindric, No. 2 Menards/Cardell Cabinetry Ford, 500, , , , , , 33, Running
5) 37, Denny Hamlin (P), No. 11 FedEx One Rate Toyota, 500, , , , , 3, 40, Running
6) 3, William Byron (P), No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet, 500, 2, 3, 51, , 5, 46, Running
7) 10, Austin Dillon, No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, 500, 8, , , , 7, 37, Running
8) 22, Ross Chastain, No. 1 Moose Fraternity Chevrolet, 500, , , , , , 29, Running
9) 18, Brad Keselowski, No. 6 King's Hawaiian Ford, 500, 10, 2, 170, 1, 1, 39, Running
10) 12, Joey Logano (P), No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, 500, 9, , , , , 29, Running
11) 25, Noah Gragson, No. 10 Bed Bath & Beyond Ford, 500, , , , , 9, 28, Running
12) 29, Shane Van Gisbergen(i), No. 16 Acceptance Insurance Chevrolet, 500, , , , , , 0, Running
13) 7, Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Chevrolet, 500, 7, , , , 8, 31, Running
14) 8, Ryan Preece, No. 41 Mohawk Northeast Ford, 500, 4, , , , 10, 31, Running
15) 4, Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford, 500, 3, , , , , 30, Running
16) 11, Josh Berry #, No. 4 SunnyD Ford, 500, , , , , , 21, Running
17) 15, Daniel Hemric, No. 31 High Point Paint Services Chevrolet, 500, , , , , , 20, Running
18) 19, Bubba Wallace, No. 23 Xfinity Toyota, 499, , 1, 6, , , 19, Running
19) 21, Erik Jones, No. 43 Family Dollar Toyota, 499, , , , , , 18, Running
20) 28, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Colgate/Philadelphia Whipped Chevrolet, 499, , , , , , 17, Running
21) 36, Zane Smith #, No. 71 Focused Health Chevrolet, 499, , , , , , 16, Running
22) 16, Christopher Bell (P), No. 20 Mobil 1 Toyota, 499, , , , , 6, 20, Running
23) 20, Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Jockey Outdoors by Luke Bryan Chevrolet, 498, , , , , , 14, Running
24) 1, Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Auto-Owners Insurance/Thank You Martin Toyota, 498, , 1, 41, , , 13, Running
25) 27, Carson Hocevar #, No. 77 Premier Security Chevrolet, 498, , , , , , 12, Running
26) 13, Todd Gilliland, No. 38 Ruedebusch Ford, 498, , , , , , 11, Running
27) 33, Kaz Grala #, No. 15 Meat N' Bone Ford, 497, , , , , , 10, Running
28) 23, Kyle Busch, No. 8 Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet, 497, , , , , , 9, Running
29) 30, Justin Haley, No. 7 Optic Gaming/Gainbridge Sport Chevrolet, 497, , , , , , 8, Running
30) 26, Chris Buescher, No. 17 BuildSubmarines.com Ford, 497, , , , , , 7, Running
31) 32, John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Pye Barker Fire & Safety Toyota, 496, , , , , , 6, Running
32) 5, Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota, 495, , , , , , 5, Running
33) 17, Michael McDowell, No. 34 Benebone Ford, 490, , , , , , 4, Running
34) 31, Tyler Reddick (P), No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota, 458, , , , , , 3, Brakes
35) 34, Corey LaJoie, No. 51 Jacob Construction Ford, 365, , , , , , 2, Oil Pressure
36) 6, Harrison Burton, No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford, 347, , , , , , 1, Engine
37) 35, Josh Bilicki*(i), No. 66 2ONE Pouches Ford, 131, , , , , , 0, Brakes
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series, (#) Rookie, (P) Playoffs
Race Length: 500 Laps, 263. Miles
Time of Race: 3 Hrs, 28 Mins, 31 Secs.
Average Speed: 75.677 MPH
Margin of Victory: 2.593 Seconds
Stage 1 Top 10: 9, 24, 14, 41, 12, 5, 48, 3, 22, 6
Stage 2 Top 10: 6, 12, 11, 5, 24, 20, 3, 48, 10, 41
Comments: Ryan Blaney won the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway, his 13th NASCAR Cup Series victory.
Prior to start, the following cars dropped to the rear for the reasons indicated: Nos. 2, 51, 11 (unapproved adjustments).
Cautions: 9 for 66 laps;
Laps: 78-85 (No. 20, 51 incident turn 2 [47]);
132-141 (Stage 1 Conclusion [71]);
146-151 (No. 31, 99 incident turn 2 [8]);
159-164 (No. 21, 3, 77 incident turn 4 [19]);
185-191 (No. 42, 19, 31 incident turn 4 [15]);
197-202 (No. 31, 77, 38 incident turn 1 [16]);
262-270 (Stage 2 Conclusion [38]);
399-406 (No. 48, 77 incident turn 2 [4]);
408-413 ( [23]).
Lead Changes: 15 among 7 drivers;
M. Truex Jr. 1-41;
C. Elliott (P) 42-84;
W. Byron (P) 85-86;
C. Elliott (P) 87-140;
W. Byron (P) 141-185;
C. Elliott (P) 186;
R. Blaney (P) 187-202;
B. Keselowski 203-263;
R. Blaney (P) 264;
B. Keselowski 265-373;
B. Wallace 374-379;
C. Elliott (P) 380-401;
W. Byron (P) 402-405;
K. Larson (P) 406-476;
C. Elliott (P) 477-485;
R. Blaney (P) 486-500
Unofficial Points: XFINITY 500, Martinsville Speedway
Rank, Driver, Car, Starts, GL, Points, Ldr, Nxt, Race Wins, Stage Wins, Playoff Pts
1) Ryan Blaney (P), 12, 35, -5, 5000, 0, 0, 3, 4, 0
2) Joey Logano (P), 22, 35, -5, 5000, 0, 0, 3, 2, 0
3) Tyler Reddick (P), 45, 35, -1, 5000, 0, 0, 3, 6, 0
4) William Byron (P), 24, 35, 2, 5000, 0, 0, 3, 2, 0
5) Christopher Bell (P), 20, 35, 4, 2363, -2637, 2637, 3, 11, 0
6) Kyle Larson (P), 5, 34, 3, 2339, -2661, 24, 6, 12, 0
7) Chase Elliott (P), 9, 35, -1, 2304, -2696, 35, 1, 2, 0
8) Alex Bowman, 48, 35, -1, 2295, -2705, 9, 1, 1, 0
9) Denny Hamlin (P), 11, 35, 4, 2293, -2707, 2, 3, 7, 0
10) Martin Truex Jr, 19, 35, 0, 2226, -2774, 67, 0, 4, 0
11) Austin Cindric, 2, 35, 0, 2222, -2778, 4, 1, 4, 0
12) Daniel Suarez, 99, 35, 0, 2199, -2801, 23, 1, 1, 0
13) Brad Keselowski, 6, 35, -1, 2186, -2814, 13, 1, 1, 0
14) Chase Briscoe, 14, 35, -1, 2176, -2824, 10, 1, 0, 0
15) Ty Gibbs, 54, 35, 2, 2168, -2832, 8, 0, 2, 0
16) Harrison Burton, 21, 35, 0, 2101, -2899, 67, 1, 0, 0
17) Bubba Wallace, 23, 35, -1, 898, -4102, 1203, 0, 1, 0
18) Chris Buescher, 17, 35, 1, 897, -4103, 1, 1, 3, 0
19) Ross Chastain, 1, 35, 0, 884, -4116, 13, 1, 2, 0
20) Kyle Busch, 8, 35, 0, 750, -4250, 134, 0, 1, 0
21) Carson Hocevar #, 77, 35, 0, 667, -4333, 83, 0, 0, 0
22) Michael McDowell, 34, 35, 0, 618, -4382, 49, 0, 1, 0
23) Todd Gilliland, 38, 35, 0, 613, -4387, 5, 0, 0, 0
24) Noah Gragson, 10, 35, -1, 587, -4413, 26, 0, 0, 0
25) Ricky Stenhouse Jr, 47, 35, 1, 586, -4414, 1, 1, 0, 0
26) Ryan Preece, 41, 35, 0, 583, -4417, 3, 0, 0, 0
27) Josh Berry #, 4, 35, 0, 566, -4434, 17, 0, 1, 0
28) Austin Dillon, 3, 35, 0, 533, -4467, 33, 1, 0, 0
29) Zane Smith #, 71, 35, 0, 504, -4496, 29, 0, 0, 0
30) Erik Jones, 43, 33, -1, 501, -4499, 3, 0, 0, 0
31) Daniel Hemric, 31, 35, -2, 501, -4499, 0, 0, 0, 0
32) Justin Haley, 7, 35, 2, 494, -4506, 7, 0, 0, 0
33) Corey LaJoie, 51, 35, 1, 484, -4516, 10, 0, 0, 0
34) John Hunter Nemechek, 42, 35, 0, 440, -4560, 44, 0, 0, 0
35) Kaz Grala #, 15, 23, 0, 203, -4797, 237, 0, 0, 0
36) Cody Ware, , 9, 0, 146, -4854, 57, 0, 0, 0
37) Jimmie Johnson, , 8, 0, 49, -4951, 97, 0, 0, 0
38) Joey Hand, , 1, 0, 43, -4957, 6, 0, 1, 0
39) Derek Kraus, , 5, 0, 32, -4968, 11, 0, 0, 0
40) David Ragan, , 1, 0, 17, -4983, 15, 0, 0, 0
41) Kamui Kobayashi, , 1, 0, 8, -4992, 9, 0, 0, 0
42) Will Brown, , 1, 0, 6, -4994, 2, 0, 0, 0
43) Juan Montoya, , 1, 0, 5, -4995, 1, 0, 0, 0
44) Cam Waters, , 1, 0, 2, -4998, 3, 0, 0, 0
45) Shane Van Gisbergen(i), 16, 12, 0, 0, -5000, 2, 0, 1, 0
46) Aj Allmendinger(i), , 16, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 1, 0
47) Anthony Alfredo(i), , 3, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
48) Parker Retzlaff(i), , 2, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
49) Justin Allgaier(i), , 1, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
50) Ty Dillon(i), , 7, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
51) Bj Mcleod(i), , 7, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
52) Joey Gase(i), , 1, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
53) Corey Heim(i), , 3, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
54) Jj Yeley(i), , 7, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
55) Riley Herbst(i), , 4, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
56) Austin Hill(i), , 4, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
57) Josh Williams(i), , 2, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
58) * Josh Bilicki(i), 66, 4, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
59) Timmy Hill(i), , 2, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
60) Chad Finchum(i), , 2, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
61) David Starr(i), , 1, 0, 0, -5000, 0, 0, 0, 0
-Ldr/-Nxt = Points behind Leader/Next higher, (i) Ineligible for driver points in this series
John Davison
Long-time RIS staffer, beginning in the mid-80s. Charlotte, NC area local contact.