Joey Logano enters the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) season as the defending champion after his three-win 2018 campaign culminated in his first Cup Series title and the first driver championship for Ford Motor Company in 14 years. Logano produced a memorable title-clinching victory in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway to not only secure the second MENCS crown for Team Penske, but also check the box for the organization’s first win at the only NASCAR track where it had yet to visit Victory Lane.
Logano’s 2018 season was the picture of consistency from the first green flag at Daytona in February. The No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil/AAA/Autotrader Ford team secured three top-five and eight top-10 finishes before claiming its first victory at Talladega Superspeedway in April to reserve a spot in the NASCAR Playoffs. The Talladega victory also ended a nearly year-long winless drought for the 28 year-old Logano, his longest since joining Team Penske in 2013.
With a playoff berth secured, Logano and crew chief Todd Gordon spent the summer months exploring new setups and searching for race-winning speed on the 1.5-mile speedways which make up the majority of the MENCS season and playoff schedule. While the team faced its share of challenges along the way, the key learnings proved invaluable to its championship run. Despite a DNF at ISM Raceway in the penultimate event of the season, Logano and the No. 22 Ford crew scored more points than all other playoff contenders.
The team steadily advanced through the opening two rounds of the playoffs and in the first race of the Round of 8 at Martinsville Speedway, Logano displayed his championship mettle as he battled defending series titleholder Martin Truex Jr. in a door-slamming battle to the checkered flag. The victory at NASCAR’s oldest track confirmed his place in the Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the third time in five seasons.
In Miami, Logano and the Shell-Pennzoil team put the garage on notice on Ford Championship Weekend as he paced both practices on Saturday, earned a top-five starting position and battled with the “Big Three” all afternoon. Following a late-race caution flag, the stage was set as all four title contenders lined up in positions one through four. With 12 laps remaining, Logano initiated a daring pass to the outside of Truex entering Turn 1, as he secured the lead and drove away to his 21st career victory and first career MENCS Championship.
Team Penske hopes the title is the first of many for Logano with the organization as the popular NASCAR star will race the Shell-Pennzoil Ford for the team through at least the 2022 season.
Prior to the championship campaign of 2018, Logano showed his ability to deliver winning at least once every season since he joined Team Penske in 2013.
Though he didn’t advance to the Playoffs in 2017, Logano still produced a race victory at Richmond and 10 top-five finishes.
During the 2016 season, Logano won three races and made his second appearance in the Championship Four at Homestead-Miami Speedway, as he finished second in the final MENCS point standings – his best-ever finish at that point of his career. Entering the 2016 season, Logano had won more races (11) than any other driver in NASCAR’s premier national touring series and he was the pick of many industry experts to win the elusive title entering 2017.
The successful 2016 season followed an impressive 2015 that saw Logano win a series-high six races, including the biggest event of the season – the Daytona 500. Logano went on to record five more victories, including his sweep of the MENCS Playoffs Round of 12 by winning at Charlotte, Kansas and Talladega. In all, Logano scored 22 top-five and 28 top-10 finishes, to go along with six pole positions and 1,431 laps led in 2015. The totals eclipsed his previous best season in 2014, when Logano produced five wins, 16 top-five finishes, 22 top-10 results and 993 laps led. In his first season racing with Team Penske in 2013, Logano earned one victory, two pole positions and 12 top-10 finishes.
As they look to defend the MENCS title in 2019, Logano will once again team with Gordon, who returns for his eighth season as crew chief of the No. 22 team. Race engineer Miles Stanley will also be back alongside Gordon in the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil/AAA/Auto Club of Southern California/Autotrader/MoneyLion Ford Mustang pitbox this season. The majority of the No. 22 crew return for 2019 and most of the team members have been together since Logano’s maiden season at Team Penske. Logano will also continue to compete in select NASCAR XFINITY Series races for Team Penske in 2019.
Away from the race track, Logano and his wife Brittany were honored with the 2018 Comcast Community Champion of the Year award in Miami for their charitable efforts with the Joey Logano Foundation. Entering 2019, the Foundation has contributed over $3 million to organizations that provide second chances to kids and young adults in crisis.
In addition to his charity work, Logano owns and operates Clutch Studios in Huntersville, NC, a state-of-the-art facility that the NASCAR industry continues to call home for partner production shoots and other commercial needs.
Logano also enjoys spending time with his wife and one-year-old son Hudson around the Charlotte, NC area that the family calls home.
Logano Key Accomplishments
– 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Champion
– 2015 Daytona 500 Champion
– Three appearances in the NASCAR Championship Four (2014, 2016, 2018)
– 21 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Victories
– Five NASCAR XFINITY Series Owner Championships (four with Team Penske)
– 30 NASCAR XFINITY Series Victories
– Over 9,900 laps led in NASCAR’s three national touring series
– Youngest winner in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series history (19 years, 35 days)
– Youngest winner in the NASCAR XFINITY Series history (18 years, 21 days)
– 2009 MENCS Rookie of the Year