Roger Penske says he would certainly consider entering Ryan Blaney in a third full-time entry if his rookie driver won the Daytona 500 next month and became eligible for the Chase for the Championship. Blaney is currently scheduled to run 18 races for the Wood Brothers this season, including six with support from Penske partners PPG, SKF and Snap-On. His first race in the legendary #21 will be at Daytona, an event the Wood Brothers won with Trevor Bayne back in 2011. When asked about the possibility, Penske admitted he had forgotten that Blaney would become playoff eligible with a season-opening triumph. “Well if he won at Daytona, I guess we would have to look at our schedule,” Penske said. “That’s a great question. The fact that it would make him eligible for the Chase for the Championship, I never thought about that scenario. I certainly would have to think about it.” Blaney is not running full-time in any of the three NASCAR national divisions. The extra six races will also allow Blaney to compete for Rookie of the Year honors, as a driver must typically run half of the 36-race schedule to be eligible. A driver can run more than seven races in a series for one season and still be eligible for rookie honors the next year as long as he never earned points in the series. As it stands, the Sprint Cup Series does not have a rookie contender.(Popular Speed)(1-29-2015)
