NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr calls on Team Penske to address Ryan Blaney pit crew issues

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has weighed in on an issue affecting possibly the best driver in NASCAR this season.

Ryan Blaney sits second in the championship after Bristol, but was plagued once again by issues on pit road – getting audibly frustrated after one fumbled stop during Sunday's race.

The Team Penske driver has lost 86 places on pit road through just eight races this season (30 more than any other driver), and his crew's struggles are beginning to become the overriding narrative around the No. 12 team.

Kyle Larson called out their struggles after Sunday's race, noting that Blaney had the best car but his crew 'kept putting him behind all day', and now Earnhardt has given his take.

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Ryan Blaney's pit crew struggles continue at Bristol

Speaking on the Dale Jr Download this week, he said: "Ryan Blaney looked like one of the best cars all day long, but he is struggling on pit road. They lost 86 spots on pit road this season. He was asked about it the other week, says the guys need reps. He feels like when the playoffs come around they'll be ready to rock."

He cited loyalty, 'right or wrong', as the likely reason the team hasn't made a change in personnel on the crew, but added: "Upper management absolutely needs to tackle this situation.

"There are people who it's their job to make sure that pit crew is badass. It isn't Blaney's job! He might be able to go into this person's office and say 'fix my pit crew, damnit'. If the pit crew's an issue, it might need a little attention."

Blaney crew chief: They did a great job

Blaney's crew chief Jonathan Hassler defended the group after the race in comments to NASCAR.com, backing his team to keep improving and cut out their costly mistakes.

“I think they did a great job,” he said. "We had a couple mistakes again, but they stuck with it. All of those guys are capable and we’ve stuck with them, and when everything was on the line the most, they followed through.

"The guys have a lot of potential. They have the ability. We’ve had some bumps in the road, some of which isn’t necessarily those guys or any one person; just kind of getting the whole group and the car and the team kind of in sync.”