Joey Logano Takes Second Cup Series Championship

Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images for NASCAR

NASCAR

Joey Logano Dominant at Phoenix in Drive to Second Cup Title

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Coming into Championship Sunday at Phoenix, Joey Logano was seen by many as the favorite for the Cup. The Team Penske No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang started on pole, and hardly ever looked back. Logano would lead 187 of 312 laps, taking his fourth win of 2022 and second Bill France Cup in commanding fashion. The 32-year-old from Connecticut is now only the 17th man to win multiple NASCAR Cup Series titles, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

From the race start, Logano quickly sent a message that any championship run would go through the 22. The Penske Ford soon built up a large lead, being on point for every lap of Stage 1. The only car who could come close to matching Logano appeared to be teammate Ryan Blaney. With one more chance to earn an elusive win in 2022, Blaney got by Logano late in Stage 2, looking to upset the title-contenders with a victory.

The only championship drama of the day would occur on an early restart in the final Stage. While getting up to speed, contact was made between Chase Elliott and Ross Chastain. An undercut and bump from the 1 sent the 9 spinning into the inside wall, and out of the title fight. While Elliott was able to continue, the 9 was severely lacking speed, and could only muster a 28th-place result.

With the final Stage playing out under green, Ryan Blaney was seemingly well on his way to a maiden victory of the season. That would all change though when a late caution came out for Michael McDowell spinning Alex Bowman. On pit stops under this yellow, Chase Briscoe inherited the top spot, trying to pull off a Phoenix season sweep.

Once racing resumed, Logano’s speed was not to be denied. The 22 quickly found second and got by the 14 with 30 laps to go. The race and championship were not won yet for Logano though, as Blaney was right on his tail and Chastain soon got to third.

Over the closing laps, Chastain had a marginally-faster car, but could not quite close in on the top duo. Both Penske cars took the checkered flag nose-to-tail, delivering Logano his second NASCAR championship.

“We did it! We’re champions again, yes,” Logano said. “Oh, my God, I’m so excited. Thank you to everybody, my team. You guys are amazing. Gave me a good racecar, good pit stop there at the end, got us up in front. Boy, that was just intense there at the end.”

“It’s all about championships. That’s what it’s all about, and we worked so hard the last couple weeks trying to put ourselves in position. And everything that happened in 2020, I knew we just wanted to have a solid run and do this today.”

“I can’t thank Ford and Shell/Pennzoil enough for supporting me over the last 10 years, getting us a couple championships today. All our partners at Team Penske, everybody that works on these cars. It’s such a big deal to win these championships. It impacts so many people’s lives.”

“I knew going into this thing that we’re going to win the championship. I told the guys we were the favorite from Daytona. We truly believed it, and that’s the difference.

“Man, it’s like I said, I had a good team with a bunch of confidence. We had all the reason in the world to be confident. I’ve never been truly this ready for a championship race, and yeah, we did it, man. I can’t believe it.”

2022 marks the third Cup Series title for Roger Penske’s organization. In addition, this season also marks the first time Team Penske won both the NASCAR and IndyCar championships.

Team 22’s 2022 season will be highlighted by four wins, 17 top-10s, 784 laps led, and an average finish of 13.5. With two championships now at just the age of 32, Logano’s winning days are likely to continue for years to come.

Behind the top three, Chase Briscoe, Kevin Harvick, William Byron, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, and Christopher Bell were the top 10. Chastain’s third-place effort gives Trackhouse a title runner-up, while Bell’s 10th is good enough for third.

Logano bookended 2022 with huge wins, as the Cup Series championship comes nine months after his triumph at the Busch Light Clash. As the offseason is now upon us, Logano will be a favorite to repeat both of these victories in 2023. Be sure to stay tuned all winter long for any breaking news, as the new racing season will be here before long.

Written by Peter Stratta

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Photo Credit to Sean Gardner/Getty Images for NASCAR