NASCAR insider reacts to Ryan Blaney win, 'one of the best finishes' of 2025 getting completely overshadowed

The 2025 NASCAR Cup Series finale at Phoenix Raceway delivered one of the wildest finishes of the season, but hardly anyone saw it. Ryan Blaney stormed from behind to steal the win from Brad Keselowski in dramatic fashion, a moment that NASCAR insider Jeff Gluck believes deserved far more attention than it received.

“You look at the overtime and Brad Keselowski is going to win. And even on the last lap, he is absolutely going to win the race,” Gluck said on The Teardown. “Like, he’s got it. He’s going to win his first race and snap the streak, you know, after a winless season. And it’s going to be like, holy crap, like this is amazing. Wow, what a win for Keselowski in the season finale to send RFK into the offseason on a great note.”

But in a blink, Blaney made his move. A last-corner surge snatched the victory and capped off one of the most stunning conclusions of the year: “And Blaney just almost comes out of nowhere in like the last corner in one of the best finishes of the whole year,” Gluck said.

“But we weren’t even talking about it or didn’t even see it or pay attention to it in the actual race for the win because we were so caught up with who finished third versus sixth. We missed the best, maybe the best, whole finish of the year, the most dramatic finish of the year or one of them. Blaney, I mean, what a drive at the end there.”

The drama was amplified by the fact that much of the focus remained on the championship battle rather than the actual race itself. Gluck admitted even the media missed the scope of Blaney’s move as attention shifted toward the title fight.

“So Blaney ends up winning. And, you know, it’s sort of the Penske philosophy all along,” he explained. “It’s funny because Hendrick ended up winning the championship and we kept saying, ‘Well, I don’t know if Phoenix is going to be the Achilles’ heel for Hendrick. And sure enough, Toyota outran the Hendrick cars tonight.”

For Gluck, the overlooked finish was a reminder of how much on-track drama can unfold outside the playoff spotlight. Blaney’s closing heroics not only delivered a statement win, but also underscored a larger problem with NASCAR’s one-race championship format, as the line between championship glory and race-day brilliance blurs.