Blaney snatches lead from Larson to win Atlanta NASCAR Cup race
Ryan Blaney snatched the NASCAR Cup victory at Atlanta with eight laps remaining from Kyle Larson, whose tyres ran out of life in the dying stages of the race.

Larson took both stage victories and led a race-high 269 of 325 laps but a 56-lap run on the same set of tyres took them beyond their limits, opening the door to the rapidly chasing Blaney.
With eight laps remaining and as Larson and Blaney both approached the lapped car of Joey Logano, Blaney dove to the inside in Turns 3 and 4 and then pulled up and in front of Larson for the lead.
Blaney’s advantage only grew after that and he eventually held off Larson for his first NASCAR Cup victory of the 2021 season.
Larson had previously taken the lead away from Blaney on lap 237 as the Penske driver took advantage of a caution - caused by Chase Elliott's blown engine at the start of the final stage - to leap ahead of Larson out of the pitlane as the field came in to stop.
With 25 laps to go, Larson’s lead over Blaney remained stable at about 2.3 seconds, but with his tyres beginning to run out of life, Blaney was brought into play.
The Penske driver then charged up to the back of Larson's Hendrick-run Chevrolet, taking the lead and then crossed the line with a two-second lead to secure his first ever Atlanta victory - and his fifth in his Cup Series career.

Race winner Ryan Blaney, Team Penske, Ford Mustang BodyArmor
Photo by: John Harrelson / NKP / Motorsport Images
Larson kept second place, having dominated both the first and second stages - Blaney nine seconds behind the #5 car at the second green-and-white flag, while Kyle Busch was on the receiving end of Larson's pace after the first stage.
Alex Bowman made it two Hendrick cars in the top three, having started 14th but factoring among the front-runners all race long - running in second towards the end of the second stage before being cleared by Blaney.
Poleman Denny Hamlin collected fourth place, and had led the opening part of the race before a competition caution - called for teams to check tyre wear - tempted the lead runners to pit, which shuffled the Joe Gibbs Racing driver behind Larson.
Hamlin's JGR Toyota stablemate Busch was fifth after finishing second in the first stage, after being forced to recover from a penalty after speeding in the pitlane and being dropped to the back of the field.
Richard Childress Racing's Austin Dillon was sixth ahead of Chris Buescher, with William Byron eighth ahead of Martin Truex Jr and Kevin Harvick - who rallied from a flat tyre early in the race, which put him a lap down, to finish in the top-10.
Elliott had failed the pre-race inspection and was forced to start from the back having qualified fifth, but produced a strong recovery to factor within the top 10 until his engine failure put him out of the race.
Hamlin retained the lead of the current Cup Series standings, extending his advantage on points as second-placed Brad Keselowski endured a difficult race to finish 28th.
Cla | Driver | Manufacturer | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | | Ford | 3:27'41.546 | |
2 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'43.629 | 2.083 |
3 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'51.837 | 10.291 |
4 | | Toyota | 3:27'53.095 | 11.549 |
5 | | Toyota | 3:27'55.902 | 14.356 |
6 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'58.747 | 17.201 |
7 | | Ford | 3:27'59.178 | 17.632 |
8 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'04.250 | 22.704 |
9 | | Toyota | 3:28'04.470 | 22.924 |
10 | | Ford | 3:28'04.679 | 23.133 |
11 | | Ford | 3:28'07.739 | 26.193 |
12 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'08.199 | 26.653 |
13 | | Ford | 3:28'12.959 | 31.413 |
14 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'14.695 | 33.149 |
15 | | Ford | 3:27'44.156 | 1 Lap |
16 | | Toyota | 3:27'46.916 | 1 Lap |
17 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'47.429 | 1 Lap |
18 | | Ford | 3:27'51.248 | 1 Lap |
19 | | Ford | 3:27'58.443 | 1 Lap |
20 | | Ford | 3:28'13.714 | 1 Lap |
21 | | Toyota | 3:27'50.422 | 2 Laps |
22 | | Ford | 3:28'03.677 | 2 Laps |
23 | | Ford | 3:28'03.777 | 2 Laps |
24 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'07.346 | 2 Laps |
25 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'11.147 | 2 Laps |
26 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'12.835 | 2 Laps |
27 | Anthony Alfredo | Ford | 3:28'14.289 | 3 Laps |
28 | | Ford | 3:27'44.837 | 4 Laps |
29 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'41.734 | 6 Laps |
30 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'53.654 | 6 Laps |
31 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'09.483 | 9 Laps |
32 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'12.480 | 9 Laps |
33 | | Chevrolet | 3:27'58.645 | 11 Laps |
34 | | Ford | 3:28'09.874 | 12 Laps |
35 | | Chevrolet | 3:28'01.380 | 17 Laps |
36 | | Ford | 3:28'03.532 | 20 Laps |
37 | | Ford | 3:28'05.860 | 40 Laps |
38 | | Chevrolet | 2:29'13.554 | 105 Laps |
39 | | Chevrolet | 1:14'24.651 | 212 Laps |
View full results |

Previous article
Reviewing Netflix's NASCAR sitcom The Crew
Next article
Logano claims NASCAR Cup win in overtime on Bristol dirt track

About this article
Series | NASCAR |
Drivers | Ryan Blaney |
Teams | Team Penske |
Author | Jim Utter |
Blaney snatches lead from Larson to win Atlanta NASCAR Cup race
Trending
Why a British prospect is trying to make it in NASCAR
There has never been a full-time British driver in the NASCAR Cup. But Alex Sedgwick, who is rising through the stock car ranks, wants that to change and could be a trailblazer for European talents to reach the top echelons of the NASCAR ladder
How Earnhardt’s death changed American motorsport
It's 20 years since legendary driver Dale Earnhardt Sr died at the Daytona 500, but the legacy of his crash continues today through the pioneering safety work done by NASCAR
The NASCAR subplots to keep an eye on in 2021
This weekend's Daytona 500 kickstarts a NASCAR Cup season that promises plenty of intrigue courtesy of new owners and a refreshed calendar. Here's what you need to know ahead of the new season
How a second-chance NASCAR ace is rebuilding his career
From a disgraced NASCAR exile, Kyle Larson has been given a shot at redemption by the powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports squad. Replacing seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson is no easy billing, but Larson has every intention of repaying the team's faith
Autosport's top 5 NASCAR machines
The American stock car scene is more famous for its close racing and occasional punch-ups, but there have been some fantastic machines too. As part of Autosport's 70th anniversary celebrations in 2020, we picked out five of its best
Why NASCAR's latest second-generation champion is just getting started
Chase Elliott's late charge to the 2020 NASCAR Cup title defied predictions that it would be a Kevin Harvick versus Denny Hamlin showdown. While the two veterans are showing no signs of slowing down, Elliott's triumph was a window into NASCAR's future
Why Johnson’s playoff failure won’t tarnish his legacy
The last season of a retiring NASCAR great has shown promise, and may have resulted in another playoff push without small issues outside his control. 2020 won't be the year Jimmie Johnson would have wanted, but it won't be what he is remembered for
Why a Le Mans winner is heading into the “unknown world” of NASCAR
Comparing Porsche's 919 HYBRID LMP1 to NASCAR is motorsport's equivalent of apples and oranges, but this weekend one of Weissach's top works aces will pit his skills against the regulars and revive the tradition of the 'road-course ringer'