MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Don’t name Joey Logano “stale bread,” however he’s definitely not the child he was when he broke into NASCAR racing with the nickname — “Sliced Bread.”
The 2-time and reigning NASCAR Cup Sequence champion will grow to be the thirty fourth driver in NASCAR historical past to make his 600th Cup Sequence begin on Sunday at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway.
It’s definitely an event for Logano to mirror on the place he’s been and the place he’s headed.
“At first look, I mentioned, ‘Effectively, it’s simply begins.’ However then if you begin serious about it, to have the ability to be round in a sport as an athlete competing at a prime degree for 16-plus years, and hitting 600 begins, it’s fairly unimaginable to have a profession that lengthy,” Logano mentioned throughout a name with the media on Tuesday. “It’s one thing that I take some pleasure in. I’m happy with that, to have the ability to hit this marker. It’s a variety of begins.
“I bear in mind my three hundredth begin and I believe it was Kenseth on the time, perhaps it was Truex as effectively, that weren’t too removed from 600 and I assumed, ‘Geez, that’s double the quantity of races as me. That’s loopy.’ However right here I’m, so it glided by fairly fast. It’s been a heck of a trip. This sport has been superior to me and my household and I’m proud to be part of it.”
Nevertheless, the Workforce Penske driver was a youngster when he made his Cup Sequence debut with Joe Gibbs Racing.
“I grew up in entrance of all people. All of us change over time as you develop up. Life comes at you and also you evolve and preserve going with it,” Logano mentioned. “Everyone, if you had been 18 years previous to 35 years previous are among the greatest modifications in your life occur in that time frame. Getting married, having children – that’s the most important change you may ever have in your life, I believe – however I did all of this in entrance of all people.
“Everyone went for the trip with me in methods, and to not point out the teachings discovered on the racet rack and the way I’ve modified as a race automotive driver, too, over that time frame, the place I used to be a younger, cocky child coming in to getting my humble pie and studying the best way to grow to be a champion and studying a variety of classes in entrance of all people.
“It’s type of neat that race followers have been round that lengthy they usually see the evolution, if you’ll, of myself and, such as you mentioned, it’s fascinating to publicly develop up in entrance of individuals, nevertheless it’s a part of what sports activities are and being within the limelight, nevertheless it’s been a heck of a trip, for positive.”
Logano made it clear that he’s not prepared for the rocking chair but.
“I at all times say so long as I can win. I actually really feel like that’s the usual for me. I like racing, however I actually love successful much more,” Logano mentioned. “If I can go race different issues and win, I’ll go and try this, however my dream has at all times been to be a NASCAR driver, be a NASCAR champion and if I can win and be a assist to my workforce, then I need to stick round.
“As quickly as I really feel like I’m a drag on the workforce and I’m not bringing something to the desk anymore, whether or not that’s on the race observe or off the race observe, that’s once I must get out of the best way at that time,” Logano added. “I need to see Roger Penske and his race workforce and the folks which are there achieve success. I care about them so much, so I need to be a method to contribute to that. That’s what I need out of myself.
“If I used to be Roger Penske, I might count on that out of an worker, particularly for so long as I’ve been there. That, to me, is gonna be the deciding issue when that’s. I don’t need to stick round and be a type of guys the place folks say, ‘Man, he went just a few years too lengthy.’ You don’t need to be that man.”
