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NASCAR driver Ryan Blaney had a scary moment following Sunday’s race at Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania. Blaney, who finished third in the race, fell to the ground multiple times after exiting his car.
The 31-year old former series champion reportedly dealt with heat exhaustion after the cool suit that drivers often wear during races failed early in the race. Temperatures in NASCAR Cup Series cars can often exceed 120 degrees and Sunday’s race lasted over three hours.
The full sequence of events: https://t.co/GQWsBpisHv pic.twitter.com/eSPW6ZTVCn
— Colin Ward (@colinwardreport) June 23, 2025
NASCAR Star Ryan Blaney Explains Extreme Heat Prior To Collapse At Pocono
“It was hot,” Blaney said in a post-race interview before the health scare. “I flipped (the cool suit) on probably about lap 15 and I said ‘oh, it’s gonna be a long day.’ So it was warm, but I was able to keep going.”
Workers from NASCAR’s safety and medical team quickly rushed over to Blaney and provided him with fluids before taking him to the infield care center on a golf cart. Thankfully, it seems as if he made a quick recovery after getting out of the heat and getting proper medical treatment.
Blaney’s former teammate and current competitor Brad Keselowski posited that Blaney may well have been ill after the series raced in Mexico City last weekend.
“Observation from driver intros-,” the 41-year-old driver said. “Most all of the drivers are still sick and dehydrated from last week. I’ve never seen so many sick drivers before the start of the race.”
The highly publicized race in Mexico City drew ire from some drivers and team members and high praise from others. Perhaps the most high-profile example is Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar, who was fined $50,000 by the team after calling the city the “s—hole” while on a live stream the Friday before the race.
Hocevar later walked back those comments. Blaney did not mention falling ill in Mexico City at any point. But it’s certainly possible it affected his health on Sunday.