Ryan Blaney’s Round of 8 will begin from the rear of the field following an early practice crash at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday.
Blaney endured a flat tire in turn one, which ripped around the No. 12 Team Penske Ford and into the outside wall.
He would not be able to continue as his car was towed off to the garage.
“I couldn’t really feel anything down the frontstretch and I just went into one and it was about the worst place to blow one,” Blaney said. “It’s an unfortunate situation for us.
“We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
There’s trouble for @Blaney in practice! pic.twitter.com/HLCyKtbzVl
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 19, 2024
With Blaney unable to qualify for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race, the defending Cup Series champion will start shotgun on the field in 37th with a backup car.
“It’ll be a big challenge for multiple reasons, but I feel confident,” Blaney said. “Hopefully, we can make our way through there. We’ve got all race. We might not be able to get stage points in the first one, but hopefully by the second one maybe we’ll get some stage points and then hopefully the speed is good enough to where we can run up towards the front.
“Yeah, it sets us back a little bit, but this group is ready to go and they know the new task. It’s gonna be a tall one tomorrow, but I’ve got faith we can make the most of it.”