- Ryan Blaney drove the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion to eighth place today in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism at Dover International Speedway’s Monster Mile. It was his third consecutive top-10 finish and his fifth so far in the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.
DOVER, Del., May 15, 2016 – Ryan Blaney drove the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion to eighth place today in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism at Dover International Speedway’s Monster Mile. It was his third consecutive top-10 finish and his fifth so far in the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.
Starting in first Cup race at Dover 18th on the grid after qualifying was rained out on Friday, Blaney spent the first 140 laps right where he started, struggling with handling on the one-mile track’s high-banked corners. A two-tire pit stop under caution on lap 144 put the rookie driver and the Wood Brothers’ iconic No. 21 Ford into the top 10.
Blaney slid back to the mid-teens during the middle part of the race while his pit crew continued to improve his car’s handling.
“It was a long day,” he said. “We got better throughout the day.”
The car was where it needed to be by lap 300 and again Blaney got into, and stayed in the top 10, although he slipped from sixth to eighth in the final laps.
“I don’t know what happened to us in that last run,” the 22-year-old rookie said. “We weren’t nearly as good as we were the runs before that. I was confident we would finish better than (eighth) but we will have to look back and see what we changed and what happened. Not a bad day for us. It was a good, solid run and hopefully we can start stringing together some of these good finishes.”
Blaney continued his alost uncanny knack for avoiding major wrecks, missing two in the latter stages of the AAA 400 Driver for Autism.
“It got wild there for a while and there were a couple big wrecks,” he said. “We missed the big one. I don’t know how we missed it but somehow we did. It was definitely a strange day and definitely a strange first Dover Cup race for me.”
Blaney is now 15th in the driver points standings as the Wood Brothers head to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the NASCAR Sprint Showdown and the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race next weekend.
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About Motorcraft
Motorcraft® offers a complete line of replacement parts that are recommended and approved by Ford Motor Company. From routine maintenance to under-hood repairs, Motorcraft parts offer exceptional value with the highest quality and right fit at competitive prices. Motorcraft parts are available nationwide at Ford and Lincoln dealers, independent distributors and automotive parts retailers are backed by Ford Motor Company’s two-year, unlimited-miles Service Parts Limited Warranty. Ask for Motorcraft by name when you visit your local auto parts store or your favorite service facility. For more information, visit www.motorcraft.com.
About Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers
Ford’s Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center offers routine vehicle maintenance such as oil and filter changes, light repair services including brake repair, and tire replacements on all vehicle makes and models. With nearly 800 locations and growing, customers can visit www.quicklane.com to find a center that is closest to them, print savings coupons and review maintenance tips to keep their vehicles running at peak efficiency. This site includes information on how to spot tire wear, how to jump-start a battery and even a series of tips to improve a vehicle’s fuel economy.
Wood Brothers Racing
Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 98 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 117 poles in NASCA’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the Wood Brothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion driven by Ryan Blaney in the famous number 21 racecar.
