Joey Logano makes his ‘frustration’ crystal clear as Team Penske's failure to extract ‘full advantage’ results in an unwanted historic feat

Defending Cup Series champion Joey Logano has expressed frustration over his poor start to the season, making him the first defending champion without a top 10 in the following season's first four races. The Team Penske driver shined in the preseason Busch Light Clash and Duel 2, placing his #22 Ford Mustang in fourth and fifth, respectively, however, he has encountered troubles since the 36-race slate began.

Logano qualified 10th in the Daytona 500 but couldn't complete the season-opener crown jewel race after a late-race crash on the 2.5-mile oval. The misery followed the Connecticut native to the Atlanta Motor Speedway, dropping the Team Penske driver to a 12th-place finish despite beginning the race from the second row.

He largely struggled in COTA, salvaging a 24th-place finish. But another major setback ensued in Phoenix, as his second-place start and strong #22 Ford Mustang bested a 13th-place finish, after a Stage 1 restart violation resulting in a pass-through penalty ruined Logano's weekend.

With that, Joey Logano has earned the unwanted feat of becoming the first defending champion who couldn't post a top-10 finish in the first four races of the following season, something he voiced his frustration about. Ahead of the Las Vegas race, the #22 driver said.

“Frustrating, I guess is probably the one word that comes to mind. I think I’ve left the race track every single weekend mad at something, which is just part of racing sometimes...So even though the finishes aren’t there, we’ve been able to run up front enough to score to stage points and to be able to be in contention, leading the laps," Logano said via NASCAR.

"So there’s some positives there. It’s not like we’re just slow. It’s just that something has happened every race so far. So that part’s frustrating in a way because it also feels like you’re not taking full advantage of the opportunity that’s ahead of you because you’ve had fast race cars and you really haven’t been able to convert," he added.

Joey Logano will aim to bag his first Cup Series win since last reigning supreme in the 2024 Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway.

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A look into how Joey Logano turned the odds in his favor to claim his third NASCAR Cup Series title

Joey Logano showed lackluster performance in the 2024 regular season but managed to punch the playoff ticket through his sole triumph -at the Nashville Superspeedway. As a result, he was not seen as a championship contender.

However, the tables turned as soon as the 10-race slate for the title began. As NASCAR's playoff rules guarantee an automatic advancement in the next round to a playoff race winner, Logano's wins at the Atlanta Motor Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway paved the way for his Championship Race.

It's worth mentioning that Logano was momentarily out of the title fight, as his Hendrick Motorsports rival Alex Bowman propelled his #48 Chevy into the Round of 8; a post-race infraction disqualified the HMS star, reinstating the Team Penske driver in the playoffs.

From there, Joey Logano won the Las Vegas race and led 107 laps in Phoenix to lift his third Cup Series title.