Logano wins at Bristol
BRISTOL, Tenn. — Joey Logano is looking more and more like a Sprint Cup title contender.
Logano surged past Matt Kenseth with 44 laps to go and won for the first time in his career at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night, foiling the 2003 series champion’s gambling attempt to secure a spot in NASCAR’s playoffs.
Logano, just 24, became the fifth driver this season to win three times, joining the Hendrick Motorsports trio of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski, who finished second.
“It’s awesome,” Logano said in Victory Lane. “I’ve never won more than one race in a season, and now I’ve won three.”
Is there a message in that heading into the Chase for the championship in two weeks?
“That we can win the thing,” Logano said.
He gained the top spot when Kenseth elected to stay on the track when most of the field pitted after a caution flag with 67 laps to go, picking track position and fresh air over new tires. It seemed like a strategy that could work, especially if he could stay in the high groove that gave drivers decidedly more speed off the corners all weekend on the 0.533-mile oval.
But the Penske Racing teammates quickly proved it faulty.
“I just knew that clean air was going to be worth more than new tires,” Kenseth said of his decision after finishing third. He said he also felt his car wasn’t as strong as he liked on fresh tires, and first Logano and then Keselowski foiled his plan.
“They cleared everybody way too fast,” Kenseth said.
He still remains in great position to make the playoffs, standing fifth in the points race and first among non-winners. His lead is now 90 points over 17th place Kasey Kahne, who has only two races left to overtake him before the field is set.
Keselowski never made a serious bid to overtake Logano, though he did pull up to his bumper on the last lap.
Logano’s victory gave Penske a sweep of the weekend, its first since 2006. Ryan Blaney won the Nationwide race on Friday night, and along with the 1-2 finish, Will Power won the pole in Sonoma in IndyCar on Saturday.
Keselowski also won the truck race Thursday, giving Ford its first sweep of NASCAR’s top three series since 2006.
Jimmie Johnson, slowed early by two pit road speeding penalties, rallied to finish fourth, his best result since mid-June at Michigan, and Kurt Busch was fifth, rallying on a call by crew chief Daniel Knost with 130 laps to go after almost being lapped.
Gordon remained the points leader despite a 16thplace run. He’s 27 clear of Earnhardt and 42 ahead of Keselowski.