Dale Earnhardt Jr Drops 3-Word Verdict on Joey Logano’s Unexciting Playoff Run

Team Penske has successfully defended the NASCAR Cup Series driver’s championship, thanks to Ryan Blaney. The #12 Mustang driver produced sublime performances when they were needed the most and claimed his rightful title with it. However, his partner and driver of the No.22 Ford, Joey Logano, was far from being his best this year. The defending champion faced elimination in the Round of 16 and, according to Dale Earnhardt Jr, fumbled a chance to win back-to-back championships.

While Junior had expressed his opinion about the #12 team emerging victorious at Phoenix earlier, he also felt that Logano’s presence in the latter stages of the competition was missed. The Team Penske Fords had to endure a rough regular season amid the deficiencies of Ford vehicles. However, looking at the arc Blaney’s season took, it is safe to say Joey had the potential to produce something similar.

Dale Earnhardt Jr felt Joey Logano had more to show in 2023

Logano had sealed a playoff spot early in the season. Beginning his title defense, he dominated the race weekend in Atlanta, claiming the pole and the P1 finish. While that gave hope to many Team Penske, the rest of the regular season didn’t turn out to be as rewarding. The 33-year-old ended the season with his only win at Atlanta, and 17 top-10s and 11 top-5s.

On some occasions, he finished agonizingly close to a win with P2 finishes at the Daytona season-opener and Martinsville and consecutive P3 finishes at the Gateway and Sonoma. Yet, that was not enough to win over Dale Earnhardt Jr, who points out his contrasting performance in the playoffs.

“Joey Logano a big disappointment, I’m going to have to say,” claimed Dale Earnhardt Jr. “The 2022 champion last year, with one win, bounced in the first round of the playoffs. Man, there is no way around trying to explain that away. Just frustration and disappointment.”

“It looked like he maybe able to have a similar year that Blaney had. They were really performing somewhat the same.”

Comparing the 2022 seasons of the two Penske drivers, Junior stated that despite having similar seasons, Logano went all the way after Blaney was ousted in the Round of 8 for a third successive time.

“Even in 2022, Blaney had a similar year to Joey. They were kind of lost in the shuffle mid-season, but Joey wins the championship. Blaney did the same thing. Logano had that potential this year, but it just didn’t happen.“, added Dale Jr.

Even this season, they resembled regular seasons. Logano seemed on course to qualify for the Round of 12 with finishes of 12th and 5th in the first two races of the playoffs. But the final race of the round at Bristol was the final nail in the coffin, as he finished 34th and fell out of contention.

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Joey Logano continues Jimmie Johnson’s 7-year-old tradition

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Following his final championship victory in 2016, Jimmie Johnson began a ritual that saw the outgoing champion leave a message for the latest one. With Logano’s time as the reigning champion coming to a close at Phoenix, it was time for him to hand the baton over to his partner, Ryan Blaney. Logano is also the only driver to have been a part of the tradition two times since its inception, winning titles in 2018 and 2022.

Hinting at the ease of transfer of the journal that Blaney brought forth, the two-time Cup champion said, “Pretty cool. Obviously, the closer relationship you have with someone, the easier it is to write a note. “

“But it is one of the coolest things about winning the championship is that journal, and the cool thing is it’s one of — if not the only — kept secret in our sport, and nobody knows what’s in it, right? Nobody knows the actual letters that are in there and what they are, and it’s something special just for the championship drivers to see.”

Showering praise on Cup Series’ winningest driver for inventing this tradition that has been relatively unknown to most drivers, Logano added, “Yeah, I’ve always kept that as something really special, and I wish it started sooner. I’m thankful Jimmie started it. I wish it started 50 years ago or 75 years ago. It’d have been amazing. But it’s something really neat to have, and honestly, a little nerve-wracking to hold on to because you don’t want to be the one to lose it. But definitely something neat.”

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Now, the burden falls on Blaney’s shoulders to leave a message to the 2024 champion. However, if the 29-year-old manages to defend his championship, would he write a note to himself? Some food for thought, surely.