Defending NASCAR champ Ryan Blaney's weekend at Las Vegas couldn't have gone any worse

From the first lap of practice to the final lap of Sunday's South Point 400, Ryan Blaney's weekend at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway couldn't have gone much worse.

A practice crash on Saturday meant Blaney would have to start Sunday's race from 37th-place. However, with a strong Ford Mustang underneath him, Blaney quickly moved his way through the pack, finishing 17th in Stage One.

Unfortunately, another crash claimed Blaney as he sustained toe link damage in the lap 89 crash that also claimed Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Austin Cindric.

That damage resulted in Blaney spinning out as he attempted to come to pit road under caution, and after replacing the right-rear toe link, Blaney only fell further behind.

As the race went on, multiple unscheduled pit stops and a lack of overall pace saw Blaney continue to lose laps. When the checkered flag flew, Blaney came across the line in 32nd, eight laps down.

It was an incredibly disappointing weekend for the defending Cup Series champion, who now sits seventh in the playoff standings, 47 points below the cut line.

With two races at Homestead-Miami and Martinsville remaining in the Round of 8, the battle-tested No. 12 team will be forced to dig deep — as they did during their championship run a season ago — in order to defend their title.

The good news? Blaney finished second at Homestead a year ago and won the fall Martinsville race en route to his first Cup Series championship.

It may take another clutch victory for Blaney to advance to the Championship race for the second consecutive season.