They say there are two things you can count on in life: death and taxes. After Sunday’s Cup Series championship race at Phoenix Raceway, I would like to add one more item to that list: Joey Logano in an even-numbered year.
Logano held off his Team Penske teammate — and defending Cup Series champion — Ryan Blaney in the closing laps to claim his third Cup Series championship, adding to titles won in 2018 and 2022.
Though Logano led 107 of the 312 laps in the desert, his drive to the championship was not necessarily smooth. In particular, problems on pit road tested Logano and the No. 22 team’s resolve throughout the afternoon.
No. 22 Crew Opens With a Slow Stop
After starting from the outside pole, Logano won the 60-lap opening stage ahead of polesitter Martin Truex Jr. The stage caution brought the entire field to the service of their pit crews for the first time in the race.
But for the No. 22 pit crew, this pit stop was far from its best work in the 2024 season. Due to time lost while changing the right front tire, Logano exited pit road in the fifth position, a loss of four spots.
A few years ago, the pit stop time of 11.9 seconds would have been considered great, but in a new era in which crews are regularly changing four tires in 10 seconds or less, the margin for error has become wafer thin.
After that pit stop bobble, it took a long while for Logano to get back to the point, not leading again until lap 260. But he led the final 53 laps from there to take the checkered flag and the championship trophy.
Team Penske Subs Out No. 22 Jackman
After the slow stop, the No. 22 crew had to make an unexpected change in pit crew personnel.
In the middle of stage two, Graham Stoddard (no relation to the author), jackman for the No. 22 crew, started feeling ill. Team Penske then sprang into action, moving Pat Gray, jackman for the No. 2 of Austin Cindric, over to the No. 22 crew. To replace Gray in the No. 2 pit box, Penske brought over the jackman from the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing team of Harrison Burton.
NASCAR pit crews spend endless hours practicing together in order to form team chemistry and establish a rhythm with their pit stops. So whenever there is an abrupt change at one position in the crew, the potential for mistakes or miscommunications can go up a bit.
That was not the case here, as the No. 22 crew did not miss a beat with Gray on the jack, executing clean pit stops the rest of the way in…
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