NASCAR star Ryan Blaney was proud of his performance at Martinsville on Sunday despite being eliminated from the Cup Series playoffs.

The Team Penske star was one of four drivers entering the Martinsville elimination race below the cutoff line, knowing that only a win would see him advance to the championship race at Phoenix.

And, despite an incredibly strong comeback drive after qualifying 31st on Saturday, Blaney could only manage second position, just falling short after a good battle with eventual race winner William Byron.

With his victory, Byron advanced to the Championship 4, where he will now race against Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe and Kyle Larson for the Cup Series title.

Blaney and Team Penske, meanwhile, will have no further involvement in this year's championship battle, with Joey Logano having also been eliminated at Martinsville on Sunday.

Blaney reacts to playoff exit

Speaking to the media post-race in Virginia, Blaney said; “I’m proud of coming from where we qualified and getting to lead and leading laps and had a shot at the win.

“We did a good job and we got control of the race for a bit, but, gosh, [Byron’s] car was really fast.

"My rear started to go away pretty big on that long run, and working through lap traffic, he was able to get by me. Then he got control of the race from there and his car was really fast.

"I never really thought I had much for him, especially as I think it got cooler. I feel like his car got even better, so he just had great rear drive and they were able to utilize it.”

Team Penske failure 'stinks'

Blaney later reflected on it being the end of the road for Team Penske in this year's championship, ending their recent domination of the sport.

Blaney himself won the championship in 2023, whilst either side of his success, Logano was victorious in 2022 and 2024.

“It stinks we don’t have a shot to go for four in a row for Roger [Penske],” Blaney added.

“Roger was here tonight and I was really wanting to see him in victory lane and celebrate it with him, but we just weren’t able to get it done and the championship streak at Penske ends.

"That’s the way it goes and we just have to re-rack and try to be better for next year. That’s all you can do.”