He was agonisingly close to becoming the first driver to win back-to-back titles in NASCAR's knockout format, but there was still plenty to be proud of for Ryan Blaney in 2024.
It was a year that mirrored his championship season in many ways, including how the final two races went. Despite losing the title fight, his drive in the closing laps at Phoenix was still mightily impressive, erasing a three-second gap to Penske team-mate Joey Logano while battling several formidable drivers.
He may have won the title in 2023, but this year Blaney solidified his place as a championship-level driver.
How Blaney impressed despite coming up short in historic mission
Winning back-to-back NASCAR Cup titles is an extremely difficult feat, and it's only gotten harder in the modern era. Since the elimination-style format was introduced in 2014, it has never been done. Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson all failed.
In truth, there weren't many who thought Ryan Blaney could be the first to do it. And yet, he came incredibly close.
It's something we haven't seen in NASCAR since the end of Johnson's legendary five-year dominance in 2010. Blaney replicated many of his stats from his 2023 title run, even winning his way into the finale with a victory in the penultimate race yet again.
At Phoenix too, the result was the same - yet the outcome was different. Last year, a runner-up finish was enough to secure Blaney his first Cup title, as non-playoff driver Ross Chastain claimed victory. This year, it was Joey Logano taking the checkered flag and the championship with him.
But while Logano was victorious, Blaney's performance in the final stint of the race was something to behold. Last year, he nearly crumbled after Chastain's aggressive blocks drove him to the breaking point. It looked as if Blaney was about crash while trying to fight a driver for a win he didn't need.
But in 2024, we saw a very different Blaney. Still fiery as ever on the radio, but when the moment came, he locked in and drove like a true champion.
On the final restart, Logano and Blaney were side-by-side. While Logano found a quick path to the lead, Blaney was mired back in traffic. But this time, he didn't come undone. Instead, he methodically cut his way forward, passing Kyle Larson and then title rival William Byron before facing a daunting three-second gap to Logano with just 30 laps left.
Unfazed, he sliced away at the margin until nearly reaching the back bumper of Logano. He never completed the pass, but the drive itself was worthy of a champion. It was reminiscent of what he pulled off a week earlier in his quest to make the Championship 4, driving from 10th to 1st to win at Martinsville.
While Blaney isn't a back-to-back champion, drives like that suggest he'll be a multi-time champion soon enough.
