NASCAR Todd Gordon

13 posts

Johnson, Knaus Can Cement Names atop NASCAR Record Books

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photo - Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images
Photo – Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

Jimmie Johnson has been there before – more than any other driver in the past two decades.

But this trip to Homestead-Miami Speedway for Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at 2:30 pm ET is different. In the first place, Johnson has his first opportunity to win a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship under the 16-driver elimination format introduced by the sanctioning body in 2014.

Beyond that, in what is the transcendent story of this year’s Chase, Johnson has a chance to win a seventh series title, one that would tie him for the all-time lead with NASCAR Hall of Fame inductees Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. Continue reading →

Crew Chief Testifies to Logano’s Prowess

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images
Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, places the winner’s decal on his car in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 13, 2016 in Avondale, Arizona. Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images

If you want evidence that Joey Logano is a special athlete, just ask his crew chief.

Todd Gordon continues to be impressed with Logano’s ability to deal with intense pressure.

True enough, Logano won Sunday’s Can-Am 500 elimination race at Phoenix International Raceway to advance to the Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. And before he took the checkered flag, he kept Kevin Harvick behind him in a race for third place that could have been decisive, had a late caution not given Logano the opportunity to win. Continue reading →

Logano Advances with Win in Wild Talladega Race; Chase Field Cut to Eight

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News

If Joey Logano’s victory in Sunday’s Hellman’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway was decisive—in relative terms—the race between Denny Hamlin and Austin Dillon for the final pot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup’s Round of 8 was anything but.

In an overtime race that went four laps past its scheduled distance, Logano surged ahead after a restart on lap 191 at the 2.66-mile track and beat runner-up Brian Scott to the finish line by 0.124 seconds.

Hamlin’s margin over Dillon for the eighth spot in the Round of 8 was much smaller. At the end of 510.72 miles, Hamlin outraced Kurt Busch for third place by 0.006 seconds—roughly two feet—to score the exact number of points he needed to eliminate Dillon from the Chase on a tiebreaker. Continue reading →

Penske Teammates aren’t Worried about Lack of Practice Time at Charlotte

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News Xfinity Series
Photo - Getty Images
Photo – Getty Images

With all track activity canceled because of rain on Friday at Charlotte Motor Speedway – a far-reaching effect of Hurricane Matthew – NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers won’t have an opportunity to practice between Thursday evening’s knockout qualifying session and Saturday night’s Bank of America 500 (7 p.m. ET on NBC).

No problem, according to Team Penske drivers Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski, both exuding confidence entering the first race of the Round of 12 in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. After all, both drivers spent the vast majority of Thursday’s opening practice in race trim, anticipating the rain. Continue reading →