Ryan Blaney defeats Denny Hamlin on the Tricky Triangle

Defending champion Ryan Blaney won the 21st NASCAR Cup race of the regular season at Pocono Raceway in the Penske-Ford. It was his second win of the season, his second win on the Tricky Triangle and the twelfth career win for the #12. Blaney won his first Cup race on this track in 2017, back then for the Wood Brothers.

Polesetter Ty Gibbs (#54 Joe Gibbs Racing) at the start
Polesetter Ty Gibbs (#54 Joe Gibbs Racing) and William Byron (#24 Hendrick Motorsports) started from the front row, Photo: Getty Images / NASCAR

Stage 1/2: Gibbs dominance ends with stage wins for Truex and Hamlin

Ty Gibbs won qualifying on Saturday and started from pole position for the second time this season. The Gibbs driver led the field for the first 17 laps until the first yellow phase. Gibbs’ teammate Martin Truex Junior won the restart and then secured the first stage after 30 laps. It was his third stage win this year. Denny Hamlin, another driver from the Joe Gibbs Racing team, came in second. Tyler Reddick in the 23XI Toyota came in third. At times, six Toyota teams were in the top 10.

Martin Truex Junior in the Gibbs Toyota
Martin Truex Jr. (#19 Joe Gibbs Racing) wins Stage 1, Photo: LAT Images

Shortly before the end of the second stage over 65 laps, the strategy games began with early pit stops. This allowed Brad Keselowski to take the lead in the RFK Ford. The next race interruption followed 20 laps later. Keselowski had to turn off for service and Gibbs was back in the lead. The next leader was rookie Josh Berry, who once again drove a strong race. Hamlin took over from lap 67. The seven-time Pocono record winner pulled away. After 95 laps, Hamlin won a stage for the fifth time this year. Chase Elliott in the Hendrick Chevrolet took second place, ahead of Brad Keselowski.

Denny Hamlin in the Gibbs Toyota
Mr. Pocono Denny Hamlin wins Stage 2 (#11 Joe Gibbs Racing), Photo: LAT Images

Stage 3/Goal: Blaney defeats Hamlin

The last segment again lasted 65 laps. Three of the favorites were caught speeding in the pit lane before the restart. For pole setter Gibbs, Elliott and teammate Kyle Larson, the chances of victory were very remote. Five of the eight yellow phases occurred in the last stage. Four of these restarts were very close together. One of these was engine failure for unlucky Gibbs.

Chris Buescher led from lap 96 to 116. Then Blaney took the lead. Hendrick driver Alex Bowman was second, ahead of Hamlin. It was only seven laps before the end that Hamlin was able to overtake Bowman. Hamlin reduced the gap to leader Blaney by 3.5 seconds from lap to lap. But it was not enough for Hamlin’s eighth Pocono victory. Blaney won the race after 160 laps with a lead of 1.312 seconds.

Hamlin had previously lost the race due to a slow pit stop. Hamlin could have celebrated four more victories if the constant mistakes, mostly in the last stage, had not happened. Blaney won by leading the most laps (44) and Hamlin was at least somewhat happy about having the most total points (54).

Ryan Blaney (Team Penske) celebrates his second win of the season in Victory Lane
Ryan Blaney celebrates in Victory Lane, Photo: LAT Images

Top 10 & overall standings

Behind Bowman, his teammate William Byron finished fourth, ahead of Joey Logano, Reddick, Keselowski, Truex, Elliott and Bubba Wallace, who managed a top-10 finish at the last moment. Reddick is currently the most consistent driver in the field with four top-6 finishes in a row. Pole-setter Gibbs was classified in 27th place. Carson Hocevar finished in 17th place, making him the best-placed rookie for the eighth time.

In the overall standings, Elliott overtook his teammate Larson with the most points. With his second win of the season, Blaney took fifth place in the playoff standings. Buescher overtook Ross Chastain. Chastain is now in the last playoff spot. His lead over 17th place is now just 27 points.

Ryan Blaney (Team Penske) celebrates his second win of the season in Victory Lane
Victory Lane: Champagne for the reigning champion, Photo: LAT Images

Gallery: All pictures from Pocono Raceway

Statistics for the 21st race of the season (Regular Season)

Laps & race duration:
160 (Stages: 30/65/65) laps (400 miles), race duration: 3:13:59 hours
Winner:
Ryan Blaney (2nd win in 2024, 2nd Pocono win, 12th career win)
Best driver with the most points:
Denny Hamlin, 54 (9/10/35) points
Stage wins (2024):
Stage 1: Martin Truex Jr. (3)
Top 10: #19, 11, 45, 24, 9, 48, 22, 6, 20, 43
Stage 2: Denny Hamlin (5)
Top 10: #11, 9, 6, 24, 43, 5, 48, 20, 22, 45
Stage 3/Goal: Ryan Blaney (2nd win 2024)
Top 10: #12, 11, 48, 24, 22, 45, 6, 19, 9, 23

NASCAR Cup standings

TOP 20 (after race 21/36)
Regular Season 2024
(with all bonus points & penalties)
—–
all winners (races 1-26):
1. (1) Kyle Larson, 700 points (3 wins)
2. (2) Denny Hamlin, 683 points (3 wins)
3. (3) William Byron, 646 points (3 wins)
4. (4) Christopher Bell, 616 points (3 wins)
5. (7) Ryan Blaney, 627 points (2 wins)
6. (5) Chase Elliott, 703 points (1 win)
7. (6) Tyler Reddick, 688 points (1 win)
8. (8) Brad Keselowski, 599 points (1 win)
9. (9) Alex Bowman, 596 points (1 win)
10. (10) Joey Logano, 522 points (1 win)
11. (11) Daniel Suarez, 431 points (1 win)
12. (12) Austin Cindric, 408 points (1 win)
—–
Total points (without win):
13. (13) Martin Truex Jr., 640 points
14. (14) Ty Gibbs, 570 points
15. (16) Chris Buescher, 547 points
16. (15) Ross Chastain, 530 points
—–
On the bubble:
17. (17) Bubba Wallace, 503 points
18. (18) Chase Briscoe, 455 points
19. (19) Kyle Busch, 428 points
20. (20) Todd Gilliland, 403 points
The first 16 drivers are qualified for the PLAYOFFS

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