(Photo: Cornnell Chu | The Podium Finish)
HAMPTON, Ga. — Last year, Joey Logano knocked out an early win at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Little did he know that it’d be his only win of the 2023 campaign.
This year, with the Ambetter Health 400 moved up to February, Logano hopes to defend and start the 2024 season on a high note.
Logano opened the season with the Daytona 500 pole, leading a race-high 45 laps before crashing late and finishing 32nd. He worked in the draft with former teammate Brad Keselowski, now of RFK Racing, before getting caught in the melee with nine laps to go.
“There were points that I could have left Brad to go block another lane and you can probably debate this either way on what the right thing to do is there, but I felt like it was too early in the race to bail on him,” Logano said in a press conference on Saturday, recalling the Daytona 500. “I know there was like eight to go and he ended up bailing on me anyway, but I had my teammate behind that with Blaney and that’s one I can trust. So, I’d rather be sitting second in line behind Ross [Chastain] with [Ryan] Blaney behind me with eight to go. I feel like I have a better chance at that point because I have some loyalty behind me. The last lap, maybe things change. The moves you make and the decisions you make have to change, but with eight to go it’s a long way to go in the race. If you lose your help at that point, you’re on your own. I’ve been on my own at the end of these races before and if they gang up on you, you’re a sitting duck.
“I was being patient and just waiting. I knew eventually Ross was gonna miss a block and I was gonna slip him again. It already happened once towards the end of the race, so it was gonna happen again. I was just being patient and unfortunately got wrecked before we could really see things through.”
Sunday’s race will be the second points-paying race with the new Ford Mustang Dark Horse. Outside of the Busch Light Clash three weeks ago, teams have had limited time to work on the car at non-drafting tracks. Two Fords participated in a test at Phoenix Raceway in December, but Logano did not represent the Blue Oval.
But starting next week, teams will get that track time. Las Vegas Motor Speedway begins a two-week West Coast swing, wrapped up with a trip to Phoenix. Teams will get a full 50-minute practice session at Phoenix. Afterward, it’s back east to Bristol Motor Speedway.
Though it’s early, Logano is encouraged about the car.
(Photo: Jared Bokanoski | The Podium Finish)
“All signs are showing great, but we don’t know that until we get to Vegas and Phoenix and Bristol and kind of see where we’re at from a speed perspective,” Logano said. “As far as the season started, yeah, they’re giving points out, they’re giving trophies out and they’re giving money out, so we better go get it. It doesn’t really matter — all the other stuff. It’s interesting with two speedways to start. That does change the game some, but there’s still the execution. The team is still here. Everybody is here. There’s a lot going on still.”
Going into the fifth race at the reconfigured Atlanta, Logano has a mixed bag. While he won last spring, he has just one other top 10 along with a 17th-place finish in the rain-shortened summer race. While the NASCAR Cup Series will visit Atlanta twice this year, the summer race got pushed to September as it’ll kick off the 10-race playoffs.
“Our approach is the same. It doesn’t really change,” Logano said. “The goal is to win, whether it’s a playoff race later or one coming up to it, or is not in the playoffs at all. It doesn’t really matter. Our approach is the same and our preparation is the same.”
Sunday’s race is set for 3 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Logano will start second.
