Ryan Blaney fires back as Spire Motorsports mocks his in-season loss to Carson Hocevar: “Thanks for reminding me”

Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney recently shot back at Spire Motorsports after their social media post poked fun at his defeat to Carson Hocevar this weekend.

During the Atlanta Cup race this Saturday (June 28), Blaney was eliminated after a multi‑car wreck and knocked out of the NASCAR In‑Season Challenge. With just three laps remaining in Stage 1, Christopher Bell’s No. 20 spun after contact with Kyle Larson and triggered the multicar melee that also collected Bubba Wallace.

Later, Austin Dillon’s spin clipped Blaney’s Ford and sent him hard into the outside wall at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway. He came last in the field with a 40th‑place finish and lost his head‑to‑head bracket to Hocevar. On June 28, Spire Motorsports taunted Blaney on X, writing:

"Thanks for accepting our trade, @Blaney." "Still owe y’all for this one. Thanks for reminding me," Ryan Blaney replied.

However, Blaney is locked into the playoffs after winning at Nashville earlier this month. Meanwhile, Hocevar currently is hovering just below the cutoff line.

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"Story of our year" - Ryan Blaney on getting caught up in wrecks

Ryan Blaney did have a string of disappointing DNFs this season in Phoenix, Las Vegas, Homestead, Talladega and Charlotte, which are one short of his last year’s total of seven.

During a post-race interview, the 31-year-old reflected on being swept up in other drivers’ incidents. He said (via Motorsport's official website):

"I couldn't see much. They kind of started spinning and coming down. I tried to get to the apron and by the time I got there, kind of got blocked....Story of our year. Just getting caught up in other people's garbage. Just when we get it going pretty good and find some momentum, we don't seem to have things go our way," Ryan Blaney said.

The misfortune has followed him through a multi‑tent car wreck since the Pennzoil 400 at Vegas.

In April, a chaotic Stage 1 wreck at Talladega triggered by Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch collected Blaney, which ended Blaney's day on Lap 43 in 37th place. Just weeks later at Charlotte, during the Memorial Day Coca‑Cola 600, his No. 12 Ford was again caught in a Stage 3 incident, which resulted in a 38th‑place finish. This week, at Atlanta’s EchoPark Speedway, Blaney was again the innocent party in the multi‑car melee with three laps to go in Stage 1.

Moreover, Blaney also has had his fair share of engine issues this season. His fIrst DNF was due to engine failure at Phoenix. In mid‑March at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a flat right‑rear tire during practice sent Blaney spinning into the SAFER barrier and sidelined him for the qualifying session. Then he suffered a blown engine at Homestead for a third consecutive DNF stretch.

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Edited by Luke Koshi