Ryan Blaney is only 65 points out of NASCAR’S points lead following dominant weekend in Atlanta

HAMPTON, Ga. — His thick moustache wasn’t the only feature that made Ryan Blaney look like Richard Petty in a dominant performance at EchoPark Speedway.Blaney drove like NASCAR’s King while ruling the Cup Series race from qualifying through every stage in a weather-delayed victory which left the Team Penske Ford driver in contention for the points championship.Blaney won every stage after starting on the pole and led 171 laps in his win. The race was delayed 3 hours, 9 minutes by rain and lightning and ended at 1:45 a.m. on Monday.The 171 laps led are the most at a drafting-style track since Petty led 184 of 200 laps for his first Daytona 500 win in 1964.As a result, Blaney is third in the NASCAR points race, only 65 behind leader Denny Hamlin. Tyler Reddick is second.Even Blaney was shocked to learn he is in the thick of the championship race heading into Sunday’s race at North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. “Really?” Blaney asked when told he is only 65 points out of the lead. “Wow! Wow!”It was a race to remember for Blaney and Team Penske. Blaney’s dominance began when he won the pole while joined by Team Penske teammate Joey Logano on the front row. He then survived the long weather delay to answer every challenge while winning Stage 1, Stage 2 and then surviving a three-wide battle on the final lap.“I couldn’t ask for a better weekend,” Blaney said. “Sat on the pole, won both stages and won the race.“My car was incredibly fast, leading. I could defend moves without having to throw, like, low-percentage blocks. I just never really did that.”Blaney knew he had the speed to recover if he briefly lost the lead.“Some moves are kind of unbeatable to defend as the leader,” he said. “I would just let people get to my inside. If they passed me, great, I think I can probably devel …

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