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Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth's fierce playoff rivalry in 2015 culminated in a dramatic incident at Martinsville Speedway. Kenseth, seeking payback, intentionally wrecked Logano, severely affecting his rival's chances of advancing to the season finale.
The story begins in the Round of 12, where Logano won the first race at Charlotte, securing his spot in the next round. It was the second race where the protagonists first collided. Kenseth, in a must-win situation to advance, was leading with less than 10 laps remaining for the checkered flag.
Logano caught up to the back bumper of Kenseth's #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota but struggled to make a clean pass, as Kenseth continuously blocked his moves. Running out of patience, Logano gave Kenseth a nudge, causing him to spin out, and clinched back-to-back race wins.
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The following week, the #22 Team Penske driver won at Talladega, sweeping the Round of 12, while the #20 JGR driver was eliminated from the playoffs after a string of poor results. As he was no longer in title contention, Kenseth had nothing to lose, while Logano was still in the fight for his maiden title.
Entering the Round of 8 at Martinsville Speedway, Logano was once again dominating the race, while Kenseth was involved in a wreck with another Penske driver, Brad Keselowski. Being multiple laps down with a beaten-up car, Kenseth hatched a plan to wreck his rival.
With less than 50 laps to go, Logano was in the lead and on his way to punch his ticket to the season finale. When he approached Kenseth to lap him, the #20 Toyota driver veered up the track, forcing Logano into the outside barrier and wrecking the #22 Penske Ford. The crowd erupted into a roar, approving Kenseth's move, as Logano slowly came to a halt.
Logano's championship hopes were dashed as he failed to advance to the season finale, finishing P37, P40, and P3 in the penultimate round. Kenseth, on the other hand, was suspended for two races, but he showed no signs of regret.
"We didn't talk about it" - Joey Logano on his rivalry with Matt Kenseth
Eight years after the infamous wreck at Martinsville Speedway, Joey Logano reflected on his rivalry with Matt Kenseth in a 2023 feature with NBC. The #22 Penske driver explained that he wouldn’t change what happened in Kansas, elaborating that he didn’t wreck Kenseth intentionally.
Reflecting on the aftermath of the incident, Logano admitted that he should have reached out to the veteran Joe Gibbs Racing driver and handled the situation differently in victory lane.
"So am I changing my actions from what happened in Kansas? No. I wouldn't do any different. What I would do differently is react differently in victory lane and reach out to him and talk to him about what happened to try to prevent it from the 'payback' that I don't feel was rationed at all. It didn't make any sense to me," he said.
"We didn't talk about it and my reactions post-race weren't correct and that's where I screwed up," Logano added while summing up his mistakes.
Having missed out on a potential title in 2015, Logano went on to win the NASCAR Cup Series title in 2018 and 2022.
