Richard Petty. Dale Earnhardt. Jimmie Johnson. Jeff Gordon. Lee Petty. David Pearson. Cale Yarborough. Darrell Waltrip. Tony Stewart.
And now, Joey Logano.
Only 10 drivers have the honor of winning at least three NASCAR Cup Series championships, and Logano became the newest member of the club after winning his third title and his second in three years at Phoenix Raceway.
Read all of Frontstretch‘s content looking back on 2024 here
That’s rarified air, and for a driver that was hailed as the best thing since sliced bread at 18 years old, Logano has more than delivered from the lofty expectations that were initially placed upon him from the moment he made laps in a Cup car.
But of course, we can’t talk about Logano’s third title without first discussing the path he took to get there and the considerable controversy it generated.
Logano had four wins in 2024, second-most of all drivers, but he had a ho-hum season overall with seven top-five finishes, 13 top 10s, 414 laps led, an average finish of 17.1 and the 12th-most points scored across the full season. He set records for the worst average finish as well as the fewest top fives and top 10s of a championship-winning season in the modern era, and they are Logano’s worst single-season marks in his entire 12-year tenure at Team Penske.
That’s not even factoring in the fact that Logano was eliminated from championship contention following the Round of 12, only to be given a second chance after Alex Bowman’s shock disqualification at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL put him back in the field.
All of the above is not meant to pick apart Logano’s season, nor is it meant to declare him an unworthy champion. It’s to provide context about his year, because all of it is true, and all of it will be used as ammo for fans and those within the industry that feel the current playoff elimination format is flawed. That’s undeniable.
What’s also undeniable is that within the confines of the current championship format, Logano has personified greatness.
Is it the same greatness that was on display during the era of the full-season championship or even the original 10-race playoffs? No. Logano has exuded a different form of greatness, but it’s greatness all the same.
He’s the only three-time champion in the elimination format, and he’s won three titles in the last seven seasons. He holds the record for most Championship 4 appearances at six, and while he may not dominate over the course of an entire season like the champions of the past, he’s the driver who rises to the occasion more than anyone else when everything’s on the line.
Sixteen of Logano’s 34 Cup wins at Penske were playoff races. Nearly half of his career wins are concentrated in the final 10 races of a 36-race season.
In his last four Championship 4 appearances, Logano punched his ticket to the finale by winning the opening race of the Round of 8. In all three of his championships, the No. 22 team had a two-week head start to prepare by clinching a spot before any of its competitors could.
Logano has led a total of 499 laps in his last four Championship 4 appearances. He’s led triple-digit laps in all three of his appearances at Phoenix, and he has an average finish of second in his last five Championship 4 appearances.
No driver has risen to the occasion more than Logano in the last decade. Even when he appeared to be down and out, he always found a way to stay in contention. His 2024 season is ugly on the stat sheet, but he impressively kept findings way to persevere.
A 110-lap fuel save in a five-overtime finish at Nashville Superspeedway was his golden ticket to the postseason, and he capitalized by winning the opening races of the Rounds of 16 and 8 to make his journey to the Championship 4 a relatively easy one. And while he had two fuel mileage wins and only advanced to the Round of 8 following Bowman’s DQ, Logano made the most of the cards he was dealt. He capped off a turbulent season with a dominant win at Phoenix, holding off teammate and defending champion Ryan Blaney in a tense 15-lap dash to the finish.
Logano and Penske are quickly forming a dynasty with the elimination format, and it’s no accident that the team has won the last three drivers’ championships. The team figured out a way to prepare for Phoenix better than anyone else, and Penske was reward by becoming just the third team in Cup history to win three straight titles alongside Junior Johnson and Associates and Hendrick Motorsports.
Has Penske been the dominant team of the last three seasons? No, but that doesn’t matter in 2024. Phoenix is the grand prize, and the team has done its homework better than anyone else in the first three seasons of the Next Gen car.
One could argue that Logano’s three titles aren’t the same as the three that the likes Pearson or Waltrip won. But NASCAR has constantly evolved, and the meaning of a champion — for better or for worse — has evolved as well. Under the current definitions of what constitute a champion, Logano has solidified himself as the most successful driver of the past decade in bringing home the end-of-season hardware. And at 34 years old, he has years and years of contending for wins and championships to come.
He’s already carved out a legacy as one of the best drivers of his era, and it’s a legacy that continues to be written with each passing year.
About the author
Stephen Stumpf is the NASCAR Content Director for Frontstretch and is a three-year veteran of the site. His weekly columns include “Stat Sheet” and “4 Burning Questions.” He also writes commentary, contributes to podcasts, edits articles and is frequently at the track for on-site coverage.
Can find on Twitter @stephen_stumpf.
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So funny. Hamlin thought it was fun wrecking Joey until Joey put Denny into the wall and breaking his back. Joey has 3 championships and Hamlin still choking lololol you can say it a million times that Denny is a HOF driver with nothing to prove, But Denny knows it really does hurt . & Joey has 3
If Joey can win 17 more championships he may be considered as good as Sting Ray Robb. Oh what am I saying, Sting Ray has already been crowned greatest race car driver of all time.