Overview

• Ryan Blaney sits 31 points below the Round of 8 cutline after a cut tire caused a last-place finish at Las Vegas.
• He says Talladega is not a must-win yet, stressing a plan to bank stage points and adjust if the early stages go poorly.
• Blaney is leaning on Randy Savage’s line that “the cream will rise to the top,” framing it as motivation for a rebound.
• He says his wife Gianna’s pregnancy has reframed his outlook on racing setbacks during a season that has included multiple DNFs.
• He has failed to finish his last two Talladega starts, reports differ on his career win total there, and Sunday’s YellaWood 500 starts at 2 p.m. ET on NBC with streaming on HBO Max and Peacock and radio on MRN and SiriusXM.