The appeal of NASCAR Cup Series racing, just as is that of any other sport, is to see the cream rise to the top. The greatest stock car racers in the world battle for position for what generally amounts to about three hours, and when the checkered flag falls, it is expected that the driver who captures it is the one who demonstrates the highest level of world-class skill on the track.
In Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway, that driver was Ryan Blaney. He masterfully maneuvered his way from outside the top 15 in the final stage to the lead, all on his own merits, at a track where passing is notoriously difficult. Blaney had had the fastest car all day, but never the track position, and he seemed to have finally attained it at exactly the right time.
Then, just as he had driven by Tyler Reddick for the top spot, the caution flag flew for a spin by Kyle Larson, who was more than 150 laps down after being damaged in a previous incident. Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 crew then surpassed both Blaney’s No. 12 crew and Reddick’s No. 45 crew on pit road. Hamlin won the race.
In NASCAR, the best driver doesn't always win
It’s not fair. Because NASCAR racing isn’t fair. As often as races are decided by the raw talents of the men behind the wheel whom everybody tunes in to watch, they are just as often decided by the random timing of cautions brought out by non-factors, and by the ensuing random shuffling of the running order. It’s a harsh reality that sets this sport apart from others, in all of the most frustrating ways.
In a basketball game, if a team makes a go-ahead shot with mere seconds left on the clock, the only thing that can stop them from winning is if the opposing team responds with one of their own.
Even in football, despite the fact that each offense doesn’t directly face its counterpart, the fate of each contest is ultimately in the hands of the players on the field. A game isn’t going to be decided because, with a minute remaining, the training staffs compete in a skills drill that results in the losing team being awarded enough points to overtake the winning team.
This, for all intents and purposes, is what happens in NASCAR every time a caution flag re-racks the running order. In Sunday’s race, it can be argued that the final yellow wasn’t even the most race-altering of the afternoon. Midway through the second stage, Brad Keselowski had a wheel come loose that littered debris on the track during a cycle of green flag pit stops, completely turning the running order upside down.
Prior to those stops beginning, Hamlin was barely inside the top 20. As a result of it, because he had yet to pit, he was able to leapfrog all the way to third without passing a single car on the track. Blaney, meanwhile, had just reeled in William Byron, who up to that point had led every lap, and was set to take the lead by pitting for fresher tires slightly earlier. Instead, he was trapped all the way at the end of the lead lap, setting the stage for the final run.
At the end of the day, the results of Sunday’s race did not reward its most impressive driver, only the luckiest. It’s far from the first time this has happened in the NASCAR Cup Series, and it will be far from the last.
Some may suggest eliminating NASCAR's overtime policy to prevent scenarios such as this one, but cautions can still shuffle the deck at any given time. It is simply part of the nature of the beast, and the lesson that must be learned from Sunday, and from all similar occurrences, is that when it comes to evaluating driver performance, one must value the eye test above the box score.
Denny Hamlin may have finished first in the 2025 Goodyear 400, but what should be remembered most is that Ryan Blaney had one of the drives of his life. He did all he could feasibly do to secure a win as well-earned as any NASCAR has seen in recent times, using his pure world-class talent to accomplish exactly what every fan tunes in to watch these world-class competitors accomplish. And sheer, dumb luck stole it away from him.