Ryan Blaney looked like the man to beat when the green flag dropped at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday. Kyle Larson, meanwhile, was hoping to work his way toward the front.
Neither driver could have been particularly happy with how things were unfolding as the Freeway Insurance 500 approached its halfway point.
What started as a promising afternoon for Blaney quickly turned into a fight to keep his No. 12 Ford underneath him. Larson was having an even tougher time, struggling to find any grip in his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.
And their radio messages told the story.
Ryan Blaney’s Strong Start Takes a Frustrating Turn
Blaney started from the pole and led 47 laps, but the speed that made his Team Penske Ford so impressive early in the race began to disappear during a lengthy green-flag run.
Teammate Joey Logano eventually chased him down and took second place as Blaney fought an increasingly loose race car.
“I’m just [expletive] sideways here,” Blaney told his team.
“I’m just f****** sideways here” Blaney tells the No. 12 team.
#NASCARThe handling wasn’t his only concern. Blaney was also worried about how much longer his right-rear tire would survive.
“The right rear is going to cord any minute,” he said over the radio.
Blaney wasn’t sure how he could make the tire last another 20 laps. For a driver who had controlled the race early, it was a dramatic change in circumstances.
Kyle Larson Has His Own Problems at Phoenix
Across the garage, Larson was dealing with a miserable stretch of his own.
“No grip. No turn. Definitely no rear,” Larson reported over the radio.
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The numbers were just as ugly as the radio chatter. According to speed data shared by Jeff Gluck, Larson ranked 30th over each of the previous five-, 10-, 15-, 20- and 30-lap averages.
Larson had already delivered a colorful assessment of his No. 5 Chevrolet following an earlier restart.
“It didn’t feel completely like ass, but we were completely like ass,” he said.
There is still plenty of racing left at Phoenix, and both teams have opportunities to make adjustments.
But as the race nears halfway, Blaney is trying to recover the speed that put him on the pole, while Larson is searching for a competitive race car.
For two drivers accustomed to running near the front, Sunday has become an unexpectedly difficult afternoon.
Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson Hit With Trouble as NASCAR Race Takes Unexpected Turn