Maths behind Joey Logano’s fuel mileage at Nashville explained by NASCAR Insider

NASCAR insider has unveiled the calculations behind Joey Logano's remarkable 110-lap dash to victory with only about 21 gallons of fuel. The Team Penske driver snapped his 49-race winless streak and brought home Ford's maiden win at the Nashville Superspeedway.

Fuel saving played a crucial role in Logano's sustained run. While rivals like Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe, Alex Bowman, and many others pitted during late-race moments to refuel, the #22 Ford Mustang pulled until the checkered flag, spanning 110 laps in a single tank.

Joey Logano kicked off his 19th regular season race at the 1.33-mile speedway from 26th place. He couldn't bank any stage points but during the final stage chaos, the #22 Ford driver benefitted and started gaining on the frontrunners.

By the time the fourth overtime restart was green-flagged on Lap 325, Logano was leading the pack. He kept the charge during the final restart as well. Though the two-time Cup Series champion faced a hard challenge from Chase Briscoe, the latter eventually ran out of fuel, while the former had enough until the victory lane.

Shortly after Joey Logano's maiden win, the notion of an illegal fuel tank did rounds in the community as the fans urged NASCAR to inspect Logano's car. However, NASCAR insider and motorsports consultant, Bozi Tatarevic believed otherwise. He explained the math behind the Connecticut native's run since the last pitstop on Lap 220.

According to Tatarevic's explanation, if a NextGen car gives 5 mpg under a green flag run and 10-12 mpg during the yellow, Logano's Mustang would've drank nearly 18 gallons, which means 3 gallons tops for a yellow flag run. After Logano pitted, 42 laps were run under caution, which translates to 55.86 miles. Thus, he should've played with the throttle in a manner to extract around 19.5 mpg.

He highlighted that the required yellow flag average is nearly 8 mpg better than a driver's average, so he expressed that Joey Logano would've saved the fuel under the green flag run. There were several cautions after the 34-year-old pitted, the field was reset repeatedly and the backrunners climbed charts rapidly. So, the #22 driver might not have felt the need to press the throttle harder and thus, would've saved fuel.

However, Tatarevic also mentioned that the math doesn't completely add up, so it's quite possible that the team was already on a fuel-saving strategy that paid off massively.

Here is the thread uncovering the math (via X).

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"Huge for our season"- Joey Logano after claiming his maiden win and meeting the playoff threshold

Before the recent Ally 400 at the Nashville Superspeedway, Joey Logano had three top-5s and six top-10s but was shy of a race win. He came close to bagging his maiden victory at the Richmond Raceway, but Denny Hamlin eventually triumphed.

For the most part, the Team Penske driver lingered below the playoff cutline and recently pulled himself above it after the New Hampshire Motor Speedway run. But after acing at the 1.33-mile oval, Logano has met the criteria of securing a win and has jumped to 9th place in the Playoff Picture. He is among the 11 drivers who have won a race this year.

After surviving through 15 cautions and championing fuel conservation, Joey Logano unfurled his post-victory sentiments. He told NBC Sports (via NASCAR):

“I know into (Turn) 3, my fuel light came on, and it stumbled across the line. That was definitely all of it. But so proud of this Shell-Pennzoil Mustang team. It’s been a stressful few weeks trying to get into the playoffs, and being able to win here is huge for our season. Felt great to get that. Boy, it feels good," Logano said.

With his win, the #22 driver has unlocked his place in the playoffs. However, if the tally of race winners after the remaining seven races crosses 16, Logano should be among the top 16 to be eligible.