Broadway Blaney

Ryan Blaney celebrates in victory lane after winning the Cracker Barrel 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday (June 1) evening. (Photo: Andrew Nelles/The Tennesseean)

Cracker Barrel 400:

Ryan Blaney took the win Sunday evening in the Cracker Barrel 400 at Nashville Superspeedway. The win is Blaney's first win of the 2025 campaign and will lock him into the 2025 NASCAR Playoffs. Blaney is the final Penske driver (Josh Berry included via Wood Brothers Racing) to win this season putting all the Penske Fords in the 2025 NASCAR Playoffs - the first team to accomplish the feat for 2025. The win also comes on the heels of just some down right bad luck rerouted for Blaney; the relief was evident on Blaney immediately after the checkered flag.

The race was a mixed bag for me. Blaney dominated but it also wasn't a run away blowout. It took pit strategy and excellent restarts and execution for Blaney to get the lead, hold the lead, and drive to victory lane. And there were moments throughout the race that there was action. We had Hocevar v. Stenhouse; Jones v. Bell; Bowman busted his ass and cleaned out Gragson; and Corey Heim was not clear and wrecked his beautiful "Chiefs" car paying homage to Eric Church's honkytonk on Broadway in downtown Nashville. Pit strategy played a key role in the race, too. And I know for many that can be boring, but I was enthralled. (I am a diehard fan who loves all aspects of the race and Prime does a great job covering the races no matter what is or is not happening). And there were some great battles for the lead between Hamlin, Byron, and Blaney. Plus, we had Hocevar trying to chase down Blaney late in an effort for the 77 car to find victory lane for the first time, and Hamlin hard charging towards both with fresher tires. Yet, the last 50-ish laps left a lot to be desired. The track shrunk to one groove, hug the bottom race, the tires evened out, and the nobody could pass, not even the leaders with cars that had been significantly slower for much of the race. And I think that's what leaves us with a tinge of a sour taste. We had, by most measures, a solid race, but the last dash to the checkered flag left us a bit bummed....unless you're a Ryan Blaney fan.

This weekend we head to the Irish Hills of Michigan to Michigan International Speedway. The 2 mile speedway hosts the Craftsman Truck Series and NASCAR Cup Series this weekend while the Xfinity folks have the weekend off before heading to Mexico City. The Truck Series kicks off the weekend on Saturday at 12 p.m. EST on FS1 with the DQS Solutions & Staffing 200. The Cup Series will wrap up on track action on Sunday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. EST on Amazon Prime Video with the FireKeepers Casino 400.

Michigan Picks:

Trucks = Corey LaJoie

Xfinity = OFF

Cup = Kyle Larson