Roger Penske would like to add Ryan Blaney as team's third driver

Brant James | USA TODAY Sports

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DETROIT -- Roger Penske said he would like to bring Ryan Blaney into the Team Penske fold as soon possible, which would entail adding a third car to his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team.

Asked if it could happen next year, he responded: “Could be.”

Penske currently fields programs for 2012 series champion Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. Blaney, 23, is in his second full-time season driving the No. 21 Ford for the Wood Brothers, with whom Penske shares a technical alliance. Blaney is 12th in the driver standings with two top-5s, four top-10s and a pole in 12 starts. He finished second in the Daytona 500.

Blaney made his first two Cup starts with Penske in 2014, but has made the ensuing 64 with the Wood Brothers. Penske has not fielded three full-time Cup cars since 2010 with Kurt Busch, Sam Hornish Jr. and Keselowski. Busch scored the team’s only two wins and finished 11th in the standings that season.

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“I think we’ve got to look at that at the end of the year,” Penske said. “I think [Blaney]’s made a lot of progress. Hopefully that’ll happen sooner rather than later.”

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