Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive show news, updates, and more!
Joey Logano Has a Fiery Message For His Haters after 3rd NASCAR Cup Series Championship
Never one to hold back, Sliced Bread delivered a blistering rebuttal to those questioning if he deserved to win the 2024 Cup Series title.
Don’t hate the player; hate the game.
All season long, Joey Logano heard the noise – the chatter from fans and pundits alike wondering when the two-time NASCAR Cup Series victor from Team Penske’s championship-caliber coven would shift into proverbial gear. See, when it comes to the track, there are expectations for someone of his stature, and for large chunks of the season, he was falling short.
Week after week, race after race ended without Logano’s No. 22 Ford Mustang cruising down Victory Lane. Where was the outspoken surefire Hall of Fame driver that legions have come to count on every Sunday? Well, if you tuned into Logano’s post-race presser Sunday presser in Phoenix, Arizona, now you know why: there’s a regular season Joey, and then there’s the guy the world saw dominate the field in the Cup Series finale.
Following his historic championship victory that elevates him into the rarified air of NASCAR drivers with three or more titles – spoiler alert, there are only 10 – the wheelman slid into his presser with a smile plastered across his face as wide as the Grand Canyon. Sure, he’s ecstatic about returning to championship form, but there’s something else. Logano is aware of how he was able to wash away the remnants of a lackluster regular season and, as improbable as it was, triumph in the end due, in part, to the actual structure of the 10-race playoff format. See, Logano didn’t win during the regular season until the All-Star Race in North Wilkesboro and, while he collected a fat $1 million purse, drivers aren’t competing for points there at the fabled North Carolina track. He wouldn’t get his first meaningful points win until more than a month later at the Ally 400 in Nashville – the 19th scheduled race in NASCAR’s top flight.
RELATED: Who Is Joey Logano's Wife Brittany Baca?
His drought led to him having the worst average finish among the four title contenders at 17.57 going into Phoenix, but, while that stat alone helps illuminate how sluggish a year it was for Logano up until the very end, what fueled even more questions about Logano's title run was that he was initially cut in the Round of 12. It wasn’t until after a post-race inspection following the Bank of America 400 in Charlotte that league officials revealed Alex Bowman had failed the league’s weight restrictions and, therefore, would be ousted from the postseason. One man’s calamity was now another man’s fortune. Though Bowman dealt with the unfortunate turn of events like a seasoned pro, it was too late – a growing contingency believed that, like regular season Joey, Team Penske’s driver didn’t belong in the Championship 4.
How Did Joey Logano React after his NASCAR Cup Series Title Win?
So, while the traditionally unapologetic driver knew there were going to be those who’d fire up their X handles and blast the legitimacy of his third Bill France Cup win, the Connecticut native, who admits he puts more pressure on himself as he becomes “more intense” and “shorter-fused” during the playoffs, made sure to spell out exactly what he thinks of the brewing narrative.
"The only reason why they don't say this about other sports is because they didn't change the playoff system," Logano said in his post-race presser. "But the playoff system in other sports is not much different than what this is. You can have a great regular season, it seeds you better for the playoffs. Now, that doesn't mean you're guaranteed to go all the way to the Super Bowl, or the Stanley Cup Finals or the NBA Finals. It doesn't matter. It might help you, and it's the same way in NASCAR. The way we have the rules now is that you set yourself up much better."
Logano further elaborated on how the current playoff system – the same one that everyone agreed to long before the season began – actually ends up creating a more evenly-matched playing field despite large points disparities among contenders.
"You look at the way we came into the playoffs versus the five [Kyle Larson], the 45 [Tyler Reddick], you know those guys that scored 15 playoff points for winning the regular season championship,” he continued. “That's three wins worth of points in three races. That's hard to make up that amount of points. And they have the same opportunity to go out there and win and move on to the next round.”
“So, for someone to say this isn't real, that's a bunch of bulls--t,” Logano declared. “In my opinion, that's wrong. This is something that everyone knows the rules when the season starts. We figured out how to do it the best and figured out how to win. It's what our team has been able to do for the last three years. So, I don't like people talking that way. You know what I mean?"
Besides telling the so-called “purists” to get over it, Logano was quick to note how the old playoff system during the Winston Cup era wouldn’t generate the kind of high-octane drama this year’s postseason has delivered.
"Because if the rules were the old way, we would play it out differently, wouldn't we?” he questioned. “So, I just think that's just a bunch of hearsay back there, and people have to accept what the times are. Times change, right, and I don't know if you have a lot of the moments we have today without the playoff system that we have."
And in Logano’s humble opinion, who really wants to tune into a championship event where earlier on in the playoffs it’s all but telegraphed who’s taking home the hardware in the end?
"Do you want to see the championship crowned with three races to go? Because that's what used to happen,” Logano stated. “That's pretty boring. You have do-or-die moments, you have the pressure, you have all of these things going on the last 10 weeks. You have guys trying to get into the playoffs, you have that storyline. Gosh, I mean how many storylines can we make? It's amazing.”
“For people to complain, it makes me mad,” fumed Logano. “It makes me so frustrated to hear that. Because golly man, it is awesome."
Still, despite Logano's frustrations with some of the haters, there's an objective truth he's basking in at the moment.
“I got a pretty sweet trophy right now,” Logano said with a grin. “I’m laughing all the way to the bank.”
