“What a turd”: Michael McDowell was not happy with Joey Logano pipping him to Daytona 500 pole position

Michael McDowell was frustrated as Team Penske driver Joey Logano raced to the Daytona 500 pole position at the Daytona International Speedway.

Logano's impressive performance marked his first pole position for the iconic race, edging out McDowell by a mere 0.071 seconds in the second round of qualifying. The race will also see a Team Penske driver at the front of the pack for the first time in history.

The Ford duo of Logano and Michael McDowell pipped Hendrick Motorsports' heavyweights to secure the front row. The upcoming Cup Series season-opener will not feature a Hendrick Motorsports driver in the pole position, an irregularity given the team's dominance in the season's first qualifying race. They have featured in eight out of the last nine pole positions in the event.

Logano's victory was built on a stellar performance throughout the qualifying rounds, with the Team Penske driver turning the fastest lap among all 42 cars in the first round. Despite McDowell's seemingly insurmountable lead in the second round, Logano managed to outpace him by just over seven-hundredths of a second

That seemingly did not sit well with McDowell, the 2021 Daytona winner. The latter expressed his frustration following the race, as he spoke to Stephen Stumpf. Speaking of Joey Logano denying him his first career pole, he said:

"I know, what a turd."

Speaking about his own performance, McDowell said (via Racing America)

"Yes, it did surprise me. If you ask my crew chief Travis Peterson, he wouldn't have been surprised. We were actually joking a lot today because we put a lot of emphasis on having as much speed as we could build into our Daytona 500 car here."

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Joey Logano reacts to securing first pole position in Daytona 500

Joey Logano exuded elation as he celebrated his team's victory in securing pole position. The Team Penske driver said after the race (via the aforementioned source):

“This is all about the team. Honestly, I'd like to take credit, but I can't today. The guys have done such an amazing job working on these cars, and the superspeedway qualifying is 100% the car."

Joey Logano praised his team's dedication and the performance of the new Dark Horse Mustang from Ford. The two-time Cup Series champion said:

"There is only so much the driver can do. So, I'm so proud of them. That's a big win for our team, for everyone at Team Penske, and Ford with the new Dark Horse Mustang. Being able to come down here and put it on the pin. Finally, somebody else wins the pole. That part feels good."