Struggling Logano looks for win at Watkins Glen

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Joey Logano isn’t quite ready to push the panic button as NASCAR’s playoff season looms. At least he knows how to ease his mind — win one of the next five races.

“I’m not sure it’s even a must-win yet, but it’s getting closer to that point,” Logano said Saturday before Cup practice on the road course at Watkins Glen. “This is one of our best shots, but we also have some great racetracks coming up. We’ve won at four of the next five. We know we can do it.”

Logano won at Richmond in April, but NASCAR ruled that the victory was “encumbered,” so it won’t count toward a playoff berth.

Logano has become a fixture in the playoffs and has made the final round two times in the three years the current format has been in place. The only time he failed was when he was intentionally wrecked by Matt Kenseth at Martinsville in 2015. That year, he led the series with six wins and looked like the driver to beat. But this summer hasn’t been kind to him. In the past 10 races, Logano has six finishes outside the top 20, and last week at Pocono the No. 22 Penske Ford team self-destructed with pit road problems. He finished 27th, leaving him 69 points behind Kenseth in the race for the final berth in the playoffs.