“All of the championships are special, but just to shut the haters up would be great,” is the sentiment that Joey Logano carried early in the 2026 Cup Season, and it was justified, looking at his performances. However, the season’s progress and his performance seem to be going opposite ways as a huge question mark looms over his title chances for the season.
Kevin Harvick warns Joey Logano
He started out the season just fine with a top three at Daytona, and managed to replicate that result at Martinsville. But ever since the race in Kansas, he hasn’t managed to finish within the top 30. Considering the championship format this season, Harvick doesn’t sound too hopeful for the #22 team.
“The reality of the situation is they’re probably not going to contend for the championship. They might make the Chase, and they, they might turn their season around, but I don’t, I don’t see them contending for the championship,” he added.
To be fair, however, this has been the case for Logano for a long time now. The team isn’t the strongest in the first few races, but catches enough traction after 10 rounds or so. This trend has continued for a long time. Even when he won the championship in 2024, it wasn’t until round 19 at Nashville that he had won a race. However, there is also the fact that all three of his championships have come under the elimination-style playoffs, which don’t exist this season onwards.
The Chase format requires drivers to be consistent throughout the year. Take the likes of Tyler Reddick and even Denny Hamlin. They have been one of the most consistent drivers this season, leading the table. Meanwhile, Logano sits in 18th. A tough spot to be in if he wants to challenge for the championship. Yet, he feels that he isn’t too far.
Logano is treating his current performance as familiar waters
“It’s not far off of where we’ve been in the past,” Joey Logano said right before the Watkins Glen race. As mentioned, inconsistency has been the only consistent factor for Logano in the past seasons, and having been in a similar situation before, Logano has a strong feeling that the #22 team could handle it well.
“You just keep grinding. What are you supposed to do? You can’t quit,” he added. “You’ve got to keep pushing through. It’s a long season, a long way to go. Yeah, it’s been tough — I can’t hide from that. It’s frustrating; it’s hard. I’ve also been here before.”
If the #22 team were to follow the same pattern that they have done in the past, Logano should begin his recovery with the All-Star Race. However, considering that race will be held at Dover this year, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them improve by the Coca-Cola 600. That is also the time most of the teams begin introducing some major upgrades to the car, and with Ford finally catching up to the lead, Logano might have a chance.
However, as Harvick mentioned, he would have to be in one of the top spots right now if he wants to realistically contend for the championship. Although the Chase carries the top 16 drivers for mathematical contention, it’s only the top 6, in most cases, that have a realistic shot. This is primarily because of how much consistency matters in this format; being strong from the beginning of the season certainly has its perks.
While the likes of Reddick, Hamlin, and even Chase Elliott might enjoy these perks, Joey Logano is quite far behind in the standings. The gap to the top is only increasing going ahead in the season, and if he wants to have a realistic shot, the #22 crew will have to start winning with every passing race.
