Ryan Blaney had concussion-like symptoms after hard Nashville wreck

After qualifying was finished in Chicago, Ryan Blaney admitted he had some issues after his hard wreck at Nashville Superspeedway. NASCAR has been working very hard to eliminate the worry of concussion injuries. However, there is still work to do as they make adjustments to the Next Gen car and other safety measures at various tracks.

Of course, Ryan Blaney had a big wreck last week. Nashville Superspeedway has an inside wall that is less than 100 feet long. Therefore, SAFER barriers wouldn’t be able to be applied to that area. Still, Blaney was very upset by the fact the concrete wall was just left bare.

As Blaney got shoved on a restart gone wrong, he spun out of control. The Team Penske driver was unable to correct himself and went straight into the barrier. It was a hard hit that worried many watching the race.

According to Bob Pockrass of Fox Sports, Blaney did have concussion-like symptoms following the race. However, after consulting with Dr. Micky Collins and doing some exercises, the driver feels much better.

Blaney said he did have some concussion-type symptoms earlier this week and consulted with Dr Micky Collins, who helped suggest some exercises and things to do. He didn't have to go meet Dr Collins in person. Said he started feeling 100% yesterday.

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) July 1, 2023

You never want a driver to get hurt. Concussions can do more than just take you out of one or two races. Kurt Busch is still not able to race after suffering his injury at Pocono last season. So, it is good to hear that Ryan Blaney has bounced back from the wreck and feels 100% for this weekend.

Ryan Blaney finding his way in Chicago

As the Cup Series hit the track for practice, several drivers took their time to warmup to the track. Meanwhile, others were able to pick it up quickly and throw down impressive lap times. Blaney was a bit in the middle. He wasn’t super slow but just didn’t have the pace that those top-10 cars had.

Once qualifying was said and done, Ryan Blaney found himself P17 to start in tomorrow’s race. There were a few issues for the Fords as they tried to make it around the streets of the Windy City. It wasn’t all bad for those Blue Ovals, though.

Jenson Button and Joey Logano, along with Michael McDowell all made the final round of qualifying. McDowell will start P6, Button P8, and Logano P9. All from different teams, but all racing Mustangs this weekend.

Meanwhile, Kevin Harvick had a rough time in his qualifying session. And so did pretty much most of the other Fords. Harvick found the wall in his run and it really put a downer on his afternoon. He will start P35 in the Grant Park 220.

So, Ryan Blaney will see if he can make the most of his race on Sunday. He will have to move up through the field and hope he doesn’t get caught up in an incident on the track. Denny Hamlin is your pole sitter for tomorrow’s Chicago Street Race at 5:30 PM EST on NBC.