MADISON, Ill. — Knowing Team Penske’s success through three previous trips at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, Joey Logano had a big opportunity in Sunday‘s Enjoy Illinois 300.
Logano entered the middle race in the Round of 12 three points below the elimination line heading to a shorter, flatter track like Gateway where Penske demands excellence. His goal was to leave Gateway with at least a 20-point cushion on the bubble going into the Round of 16 finale at a treacherous Bristol Motor Speedway.
Mission accomplished.
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The No. 22 Ford was a factor for the bulk of the 240 laps as three-time championship-winning crew chief Paul Wolfe aced the strategy. After collecting eight stage points in Stage 2, Logano was in position to race Denny Hamlin for what could have been a battle for the victory during a cycle of green-flag pit stops. Some drivers were hoping to stretch their fuel tanks to the finish, but aborted that plan when Ty Dillon had a brake rotor explode with 32 laps remaining.
Along with Hamlin and Chase Briscoe, Logano was in prime position for the sprint to the finish, ultimately losing a pair of positions on the final restart to Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney and dropping to fifth at the checkered flag. It was the reigning champion‘s fourth top-five finish of the season — and coupled by his fourth-place showing at Richmond Raceway, it was Logano’s second straight on a track comparable to Phoenix Raceway, host of the 2025 championship race.
“I thought we had a shot at it and did a good job as a team and put ourselves in position,” Logano said. “Paul had some good pit calls, the team did a good job on pit road keeping us in the hunt and potentially having a shot to win the race.
“Just got beat into the corner on a restart. I thought I‘d be able to drive away, but Toyota has smoke right now. I lost control of it and hounded the 11 for a while and hoped we could get him on the cycle and wasn‘t able to do that. The last restart, lost the balance a little too much. We did a good job executing today. Wish it was a win, but overall another top five at St. Louis is good and we will take that and move on.”
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Logano has four top-five finishes in as many trips to St. Louis, host of his best average finish at any venue on the circuit (3.5). Admittedly, Team Penske is trailing the Toyotas in the speed department, as the manufacturer earned its 200th Cup Series victory on Sunday with Hamlin hoisting the trophy.
“They are ridiculously fast,” Logano said of Toyota winning the opening two postseason races. “They have a lot of grip and a lot of horsepower — a lot. We‘ve got a lot of work to do to catch up. They are really, really fast and we have to be absolutely perfect in every category to contend, and we need them to make mistakes, which they do. We have potential to do it; it‘s just going to be challenging.”
Logano jumped three positions on the playoff grid to 10th, with a 21-point buffer over Austin Dillon, who is the first driver outside and looking in. Logano won‘t be losing sleep this week but also knows how quickly that gap can evaporate in the elimination race at Bristol.
The unknowns of a new Goodyear Racing tire debuting at Bristol, the possibility of an unseasonably cool race and how the PJ1 traction compound affects the racing groove are worrisome for Logano. But it‘s the same circumstances for everyone.
“All we can focus on is trying to bring the best car we can, qualify well and score stage points,” Logano said. “That‘s the only way you can feel decent about it.
“It‘s not comfortable, but it‘s about getting to the next round. You get to the next round and get another reset and get after it again. I feel better than we did after Darlington. We just have to go do it again when we go to Bristol.”
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