Joey Logano, driving the #22 Team Penske Ford, ended his 45-race winless streak by winning the Window World 450 at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Passing Denny Hamlin in the final lap, Logano now sits 15th in the championship standings, 49 points ahead of the starting grid, with five races to spare.
The price of ignoring Hamlin
The race, which ran flag-to-flag throughout the final lap, ended with only six drivers on the lead lap. An untimely precautionary flag, issued after Alex Bowman cut off Tyler Reddick mid-green flag pit loop, condemned Logano to a lap behind for much of the race. Logano thwarted Hamlin's attempt to overtake him with an undercut: Hamlin pitted a lap early, but Logano returned a lap later still ahead of Hamlin. Hamlin's team principal, Chris Gayle, commented, "Car #22 handled the traffic a little better, it was incredibly close; whoever was ahead before that pit loop probably would have won.".
Hamlin congratulated his former teammate after the race, saying: “The speeds were almost equal in the final stage; we could have had contact at one point. Logano maneuvered extremely well in traffic, it was a deserved victory.” Hamlin noted that the three-year-old asphalt on the track increased tire wear, and that lap times dropped from 18.80 seconds to 19.20 seconds in the final stage, a decrease of about four milliseconds; however, he emphasized that this alone was not enough to overtake his rival.
Under pressure, the team faces a critical situation in the standings.
Logano's victory not only ended a long drought but also temporarily averted a threat that could have left his team out of the Chase for the Championship. NASCAR is no longer using the "winner goes straight" format this season; therefore, Logano must continue the points battle to stay in the top 16 after five races. The current 49-point buffer in 15th place is far from reassuring in terms of calculations.
Logano candidly assessed the difficult period the season went through: “With six shared championships, you can’t help but ask why we’re so far behind. On bad Mondays, you first look at yourself. We didn’t have the answer; if we had, we would have fixed it.” He also acknowledged that he and crew chief Paul Wolfe are not yet championship favorites; however, he predicted that if they could close the gap of around 60 points in the next five races, they could enter the top 10. He also recalled that in 2011, Tony Stewart effectively won the Chase for the Championship from that point.
According to Logano, the formula for getting back to the top is simple: collect points in both stages and consistently finish in the top 10. ’If we do this consistently, we can create a chance for ourselves; 15th place is neither enough to make the Playoffs nor to compete for the championship,“ he said.
A nostalgic day for the track and the fans.
North Wilkesboro Speedway perfectly reflected the racing atmosphere of 1980s North Carolina. Logano emphasized that the experience was particularly meaningful for the fans who attended this sold-out event: ’The people who came here are the ones who love old-school NASCAR; they’re the ones who keep the sport alive. Bringing this track back is a big deal for them.“