The Double has been something that many drivers aim to attempt. However, only five have been fortunate to do so over the last three decades, and Ryan Blaney might stand on the unfortunate side of things.

Penske runs their program with Ford in NASCAR and with Chevy in IndyCar. And this manufacturer conflict makes Blaney's Double dream uncertain as of now.

During his appearance on the Sirius XM NASCAR radio, the 2023 champion opened up about the same. “And yeah, the Ford side and the Chevy side that would be a little difficult, I feel like, but yeah.”

Ever since winning his NASCAR championship in 2023, Blaney has had his eyes on attempting the Double. The No. 12 driver has put his idea across to Roger Penske on multiple accounts. But the team boss pumped the brakes on his driver's dream.

Blaney also spoke about Kyle Larson’s attempt at the Double and pointed out how stressful the event can get. “And it seems stressful like ‘can I get back to Charlotte in time,’ you know, one year he didn't get back to be able to run the car. I think there was rain here.”

The manufacturers can get pretty serious about letting their drivers cross to another manufacturer's team. A recent example of this is Connor Zilisch, who is a Chevrolet driver. His plans of participating in Australia’s Supercars finale came to a halt after Triple Eight Race Engineering decided to switch to Ford. 

Kyle Larson, on the other hand, was able to do the ‘Double Duty’ because both Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren run their vehicles with the same manufacturer. 

This time, Kathrine Legge will be attempting to make history while attempting the 'Double'. She will be the first female driver to attempt the double duty.

The iconic Double race attempt takes place on Memorial weekend, referring to drivers attempting to compete in IndyCar's Indy 500 and NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600 on the same day and complete all 1100 miles of racing. 

As of now, the No 12 driver remains the most reliable and consistent driver on Team Penske. He recently signed a contract extension with the Mooresville-based team. 

Ryan Blaney signs a multi-year contract with Team Penske

The No 12 driver recently announced his multi-year contract with the team via the radio program ‘Total Motorsports Daily NASCAR.’  

Speaking about the extension further, he said, “Being loyal to the people who’ve given you opportunities in your life and your career is super important to me, and Roger is that guy, so I really couldn’t see myself anywhere else.”  

Currently, Blaney is the only consistent driver not just for Penske but also for Ford. This season so far, he has managed to secure one win (at Phoenix) and a pole position (at Bristol).

Out of his 18 wins in the Cup Series, 17 have been with Penske, and he currently stands in fourth place. It remains to be seen if Blaney and the team can emulate their 2023 victory under the new chase format.

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Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason