Joey Logano snaps slump with Texas win of attrition

Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Joey Logano responded to both his Talladega disqualification last week, and generally a slow start to his season, with a victory on Sunday in the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway.

The win was his first of the year in 11 starts but also just his second top-10 and first top-5 of the campaign.

“The sport changes so quickly,” Logano said on the frontstretch on FS1. “It is crazy how you can just ride these roller coasters. I am so proud of the team. Proud to finally get AAA Insurance into victory lane. They have been a partner of mine since I have been at Penske, so 13 or 14 years and we have yet to win with them so it was awesome to get that done here. The JL Kids Crew is here so we will have fun with them in victory lane. A lot of people here. My family is at home, but hey, Brittany and the kids, I love you guys. It is going to be a fun night.”

Logano won and race best described as a ‘battle of attrition,’ which saw several leaders all have issues throughout the race.

Michael McDowell 19 laps late on older left side tires after snookering Kyle Larson on a third stage restart. Those tires eventually gave way and Logano passed him with four laps to go before crash when Blaney got him for second.

Carson Hocevar led the first 22 laps from the pole but was involved in a pair of incidents. Josh Berry spun from the lead in the middle stages of the race. Chris Buescher cut a right rear tire while running third. Chase Elliott suffered a vibration after hitting the bump in Turns 3 and 4 making a pass on William Byron for the lead. Byron hit Cole Custer on pit road while leading.

It was just a chaotic race.

Logano had to race his way to the front from a 27th starting spot.

“Slowly, methodically, a couple at a time,” Logano said of his drive. “We had a really tough pit stall situation. The pit crew did a good job of managing that and just grabbed a couple (of positions) here and there.

“The car was fast. I knew that yesterday. We just did a poor job qualifying. Just grinded it. Just keep grinding a couple here and a couple there and eventually get a win here. It’s nice to get one. Real nice.”

Ross Chastain finished second after having several pit road mishaps.

‘Gosh, that’s a working class day,” Chastain said. “Just no confidence in the car yesterday. Y’all saw that. Just the speed of the Trackhouse cars on Saturdays is just terrible. We’re just not confident, all three drivers.

“So there was one pit stop today that (crew chief) Phil Surgen and the group—it takes a ton of people back at Trackhouse and on the box here in GM at Chevrolet. They made me a confident driver all of a sudden with one adjustment. It was small stuff. It doesn’t even make sense, but after that I was a confident driver.”

Kyle Larson led in the closing stages but got beat on a restart by McDowell.

“You don’t want to give up the lead on a mile and a half,” Larson said. “It’s hard to get it back. Yeah, Michael just did a good job timing it.”