Bob Pockrass
FOX NASCAR Insider
LAS VEGAS — Joey Logano went from out of the playoffs to having a spot to vie for the NASCAR Cup Collection title in three weeks at Phoenix Raceway.
Logano, who thought he was knocked out of the playoffs final week at Charlotte till studying a few hours after the race that Alex Bowman failed postrace weight necessities to place Logano into the semifinal spherical, vaulted himself into the championship race through the use of a fuel-mileage technique to seize the victory Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Logano stated he and his spouse laughed about it in victory lane.
“Do you consider one week in the past at this hour… I come strolling out of our bed room, and I stated, ‘You are not going to consider this s—,'” Logano stated in recalling the dialog. “Right here we’re every week later. I instructed her, ‘You ain’t going to consider this, that we received this one.'”
The Workforce Penske driver entered the Spherical of 8 (NASCAR’s model of the semifinal spherical) with the fewest factors, and whereas at the very least one driver, will likely be among the many 4 finalists primarily based on factors, successful a race earns a playoff driver an computerized bid. The 4 drivers who make it to the championship spherical race (together with everybody else) within the season finale Nov. 10 at Phoenix Raceway and the highest finisher amongst these 4 wins the title.
“We had perhaps not one of the best common season, however when the pay window opens up within the playoffs, the 22 [team] reveals up,” stated two-time Cup champion Logano, who was fifteenth within the regular-season standings whereas the opposite seven drivers within the Spherical of 8 had been within the high seven.
Christopher Bell thought he could be that driver in victory lane as he led 155 laps and had the dominant automobile, however Logano ran the ultimate 69-lap green-flag run with out stopping for gas whereas many of the area opted to pit. Logano was instructed he could be one lap quick and was in a position to save sufficient after which go Daniel Suarez with six laps remaining.
“[My crew chief] instructed me we’re one lap quick,” Logano stated. “Saving one lap over the course of that many laps, not that onerous to do.”
The opening race of the three-race spherical (Homestead and Martinsville stay) didn’t go easily for the eight drivers nonetheless eligible for the title as Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney had been concerned in a wreck on Lap 89 whereas Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson had been stymied by issues on pit street.
Takeaways from Las Vegas:
Reddick Flips, Elliott Annoyed
Reddick, who received the opening stage, tried to make a transfer on the skin to make it three-wide when Chase Elliott (within the center) and Martin Truex Jr. ended up having contact, turning Reddick, who did a flip within the trioval grass.
Reddick could not proceed after a transfer he wished he would have again however one which he felt he had sufficient room to make.
“Being aggressive, I really feel like it is advisable to be on these mile-and-a-half [tracks], and it bit me right this moment,’ Reddick stated. “The 19 [of Truex] wiggled up into the 9 [of Elliott] and we simply all ran out of room.
“That is all there’s to it.”
Elliott appeared to have combined emotions afterward.
“I actually perceive however there was not loads of room … within the nook,” Elliott stated. “At that time within the race, it was a giant gamble for him to financial institution on me recognizing and Martin recognizing that he had a giant run up high.
“It was aggressive for certain, however who am I to say, we’re attempting to race for a championship.”
Elliott stated his automobile was presumably one of the best one he had at Vegas in the previous couple of years.
“I used to be personally simply attempting to get out of the state of affairs and was a bit too late at that time,” Elliott stated. “It sucks.”
Reddick’s automobile landed on all fours and he drove it to pit street, however the automobile was destroyed when it got here to the suspension and the brakes.
“I noticed a bit little bit of grass, a bit little bit of the sky,” Reddick stated concerning the flip.
Logano capitalizes with some assist?
Ryan Blaney was additionally caught up within the Reddick wreck and was a number of laps down in following Logano within the ultimate laps.
Bell felt Blaney performed some protection for Logano — and was OK with that.
“It is truthful recreation and props to [Blaney],” Bell stated. “The 22 [of Logano] successful was most likely dangerous for the 12 [of Blaney] as a result of they’re racing one another for factors to get in.
“Penske received the race and received one automobile in. They did it proper.”
Blaney scoffed on the thought he was serving to hold Bell from catching him.
“The 20 [of Bell] did not get to me till the final nook,” Blaney stated. “I do not know what the hell you’ll suppose I am blocking him for.
“I am working the highest. I am not taking anybody’s air away. He ought to have perhaps received to the 22 faster. He would have been in a position to go me fairly simple, however he was half a lap too late.”
Larson, Hamlin pit crew woes
Each Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson had been the sufferer of gradual pit stops that price them a number of positions through the race, with Larson even having to pit a second time and going a lap down in a single sequence.
Hamlin completed eighth and Larson completed eleventh.
“Simply not a clear day,” Hamlin stated. “That actually type of sums it up. You will have that. We’ll simply do one of the best we will to get one of the best end.”
Larson had the same outlook.
“We made probably the most of it,” Larson stated. “[It] might have been loads worse.”
Larson at the very least has the comfort that he leaves the race 35 factors above the cutoff whereas Hamlin is 27 factors behind.
“We’re not working fairly as robust as what we had been earlier within the 12 months,” Hamlin stated. “We’re positively not as clear execution-wise as what we had been.
“We have simply received to wash it up, go to Homestead and attempt to win it.”
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports activities. He has spent many years masking motorsports, together with over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting Information, NASCAR Scene journal and The (Daytona Seaside) Information-Journal. Comply with him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
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