Joey Logano, once above the playoff cutline heading into Darlington, dropped to 13th in the standings after finishing 20th, placing him below the cutoff mark. This shift has made the upcoming races at Gateway and Bristol essential for his championship ambitions.
Gateway presents a significant opportunity, as Logano holds an impressive average finish of 3.0 at the track, making it his best chance to regain momentum. In contrast, Bristol has been less forgiving, with a disappointing average of 27.0 over five starts. Despite these challenges, Logano underscored the resilience required in NASCAR, noting that no driver is ever truly eliminated until the season’s end.
Reflecting on his Darlington race, he described it as frustrating but quickly focused on moving forward. Logano emphasized the urgency that playoffs bring and likened them to a ship that won’t wait for any driver to catch up.
“You just have to write that one off as quick as possible, move on, figure out what you have to do at Gateway and keep going because at some point in the playoffs your back will be up against the wall and it will be do-or-die at some point,”
he said.
100 percent in the playoffs in these 10 weeks you will have that at least one time. If you make it to the Championship 4, your back is up against the wall. You must win.
—Joey Logano, NASCAR driver
According to Logano, every driver faces moments of intense pressure during the playoffs, and avoiding those do-or-die situations early on is critical. This reality places Gateway at the forefront of his strategy this weekend.
Meeting Pressure Head-On at Gateway
The positive outlook for Logano is his proven ability to perform under pressure. Throughout his career, he has experienced both triumphs and setbacks when stakes are high, and he believes those experiences equip him to navigate this pivotal moment. His resilience could be the key to maintaining his championship challenge through the demanding final rounds.
Logano’s Perspective on Bristol as a Crucial Elimination Race
Across 30 starts at Bristol, Logano has earned two wins and six top-five finishes. However, the track has become more challenging due to the parity introduced in NASCAR’s Next Gen era, especially on its concrete surface. Logano admitted that he has yet to master this setup with the latest car specifications, despite achieving success there in previous NASCAR generations.
He commented on ongoing changes affecting the race:
“Goodyear is bringing a different tire and trying to promote more tire wear. All of those type of things could change a lot of things as well, so as we go through our setup and things you want to change, there’s a lot of different variables that are changing on top of that.”
I don’t want to call it an unknown, but there’s a lot of things that we’re gonna have to figure out when we get there, and you guys know how the rules are today, you don’t really have the opportunity to change much, so we’re trying to anticipate some of the things coming our way.
—Joey Logano, NASCAR driver
With his postseason survival on the line, Logano must find ways to adapt quickly at Bristol to avoid elimination. Failure to do so could halt his impressive record of reaching the Championship 4 in every even-numbered year, a streak that has defined much of his recent success.
