Blaney and his black eye get ready to get back to racing at Kansas

Ryan Blaney brought a black eye to Kansas Speedway on Friday, a lingering reminder of what happened the last time he was at a NASCAR Cup Series track.

“It’s fine,” said Blaney of his left eye. “I wish it healed a little bit quicker than this, but it did not.”

In his first media availability since the fight with Carson Hocevar that left him bruised, Blaney reiterated much of what he said earlier this week on Denny Hamlin’s podcast. The uncharacteristic response from a normally even-keeled driver was the buildup of how frustrating the last few weeks have been for the No. 12 group at Team Penske. A wreck at Bristol Motor Speedway, off the bumper of Hocevar, was the boiling point.

As the series moves on, Blaney admitted he isn't sure how he and Hocevar will race each other. But things happen quickly, and decisions have to be made quickly, which can sometimes lead to a different reaction when given time to reflect and watch a video.

The two drivers hadn't had many issues together before, aside from contact in the spring of 2025 at EchoPark Speedway that left Blaney and Hocevar civilly talking it over post-race on pit road. Blaney still believes that the Bristol incident was split on who was at fault, as both were racing for the same part of the track.

“I don’t think there will be anything different than racing hard in tough moments per usual,” said Blaney. “But that’s with anybody at certain moments of the race. I don’t really see a big change.”

NASCAR did not penalize Blaney or Hocevar. NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell said that while they don’t encourage fighting, it is understandable when it happens in a moment of passion.

Blaney, naturally, agreed by saying it was the right choice. In that sense, he took the blame for starting the fight and for what could have led to a penalty.

“I would fully understand getting slapped with a penalty if I went over and initially a punch or something like that,” Blaney said. “But in that situation, I kind of initiated the confrontation, and Carson defended himself, and I’m happy they didn’t do anything and let it simmer. So, I think it’s the right call in that situation.”

Team Penske also supported Blaney afterward.

“Roger [Penske] was fine,” Blaney said. “He was one of the few people I was worried about disappointing. I don’t ever want to disappoint Roger. I don’t even want to disappoint Walter [Czarnecki], Bud [Denker], Jonathan Gibson, Mike Nelson, Travis Geisler on that side. I don’t want to disappoint my guys, either.

“But Roger was very supportive. He was one of the first guys who called me Sunday morning, and it was nice to talk to him. He got a chuckle or two out of me on a rough morning. So, it was really nice to hear his voice and his words of encouragement for me after a night like that.”