Steel Warrior: Turn Every Disdain Into Motivation
What can a NASCAR superstar achieve in 12 years? If you’re Joey Logano, the answer is: three Cup Series championships, 36 career wins, and a place in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Since joining Team Penske in 2013, Logano has dominated the sport, yet behind the trophies lies a career-defining struggle, rejection, and redemption.
Before finding glory at Penske, Logano endured a tumultuous four-year stint at Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), where he was once hailed as “the next big thing”—only to be cast aside in a move that could have derailed his career forever.
The Bitter Split: Logano Opens Up on His Joe Gibbs Nightmare
Logano’s departure from JGR wasn’t just another roster change—it was a brutal wake-up call. Speaking on Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour, Logano revealed how his early hype and overconfidence turned into his biggest downfall.
“When I started at Gibbs, I was 15 years old… I grew up in the limelight. At that point, I never lost – I just jumped in cars and won. I didn’t have to work at it. There was a lot of hype, and I believed it. That was the worst thing for me.”
Despite being the youngest Xfinity race winner (18 years old) and the youngest Cup Series race winner (19 years old), Logano struggled to find his rhythm at JGR. The high expectations, coupled with Tony Stewart’s departure, left him drowning under immense pressure.
The result? Two wins in 147 Cup starts. A career hanging by a thread.
Joey Logano’s “Sliced Bread” Hype: A Blessing or a Curse?
From the moment Joe Gibbs signed Logano as a development driver in 2005, expectations skyrocketed. Dubbed “Sliced Bread”—because he was supposed to be the best thing since sliced bread—he won the 2007 K&N Pro Series Championship and looked destined for greatness.
But reality hit hard. NASCAR wasn’t a one-man show, and Logano admits he wasn’t prepared for the bigger picture:
“I learned what we needed to do as a team to be successful. But I had to go through those struggles first. I had to learn it the hard way—in front of everybody.”
In a shocking turn, JGR attempted to replace him twice—once with Carl Edwards in 2011, then officially with Matt Kenseth in 2012. By the time the announcement came, Logano was already labeled a “bust” at just 22 years old.
Second Chances: How Roger Penske Rescued Logano’s Career
With his JGR dream shattered, Logano was at a crossroads. Enter Brad Keselowski, who convinced Roger Penske to give Logano a shot. It was a make-or-break moment.
“That was my opportunity to do it all over again. Like anybody else, when you do something a second time, you’re going to do better.”
And better he did.
Within his first season at Penske, Logano silenced doubters with a top-10 finish in the standings. By 2015, he had claimed six wins and a Cup Series title, proving that Joe Gibbs had made a colossal mistake.
Redemption Ark Complete: Three Championships and Counting
Fast forward to today, and Joey Logano is a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion. His most recent triumph in 2024 came after an extraordinary playoff run—one that saw him defy all odds and critics.
Despite being eliminated in the Round of 8, Logano miraculously re-entered due to Alex Bowman’s post-race penalty, setting the stage for one of the wildest championship comebacks in NASCAR history.
His reflection?
“I know how to do it better now. I know how to treat people, how to race, how to handle controversy. Everything I went through at JGR made me the driver I am today.”
Did Joe Gibbs Racing Regret Letting Joey Logano Go?
It’s easy to wonder if Joe Gibbs Racing looks back at its decision and thinks, “What if?”
Logano’s meteoric rise at Team Penske paints a stark contrast to his early struggles. While JGR continued to churn out talent, they missed out on a generational superstar who redefined his career elsewhere.
And perhaps Logano was never meant to thrive under Gibbs.
At Team Penske, he found a home. A winning culture. A place where he belonged.
One thing is certain: Joey Logano’s legacy is still being written.
And for JGR? Well, they might just have one of the biggest regrets in NASCAR history.
The Legacy of Joey Logano: A Champion Forged in Fire
Joey Logano’s journey from a discarded prospect at Joe Gibbs Racing to a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion at Team Penske is nothing short of legendary. But what truly defines his legacy isn’t just the wins—it’s his resilience, his ability to evolve, and his refusal to be defined by failure.
Many young drivers fail to recover from early career setbacks. Some disappear into obscurity, others bounce around in lower-tier teams. Logano refused to be that guy. When he joined Penske in 2013, he wasn’t just trying to save his career—he was on a mission to prove that JGR had made a colossal mistake. And every race, every hard-fought victory, was his way of saying, “I was never the problem.”
But beyond the revenge factor, Logano’s transformation at Penske went beyond raw talent. He became a smarter, more strategic driver, one who knew when to be aggressive and when to play the long game. His 2018 championship run was a masterclass in adaptability, culminating in a title-clinching win at Homestead-Miami Speedway. His 2022 championship, on the other hand, showcased his ability to dominate under pressure, securing a pole position and leading 187 of 312 laps in the final race.
Now, with three titles to his name, Logano’s place in NASCAR history is cemented. The question is no longer whether he belongs among the greats—it’s whether he can add more championships and further separate himself from the pack.
