2025 might just be the year for Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports to topple Team Penske off its throne. They have cracked the code to succeed in the Next Gen era, bringing in three consecutive titles since 2022. Joey Logano won twice, while Blaney added his name to the history books in 2023. One thing that has been common throughout these wins is their dominant display on the Phoenix Raceway. But you see, with the major NASCAR announcement, this dominant streak is now under a threat. Finally, NASCAR listened to the fans and has shifted the 2026 championship race to Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Clearly, Joey Logano and his team had found a secret formula to dominate at the Jewel of the Desert and bag championships. So the question now looms over the #22 team’s head: Will they be able to maintain this level of consistency at Homestead? Logano’s crew chief, Paul Wolfe, made some bold claims to answer this query.

Joey Logano can prosper anywhere

The No. 22 Ford driver clinched his 2018 title with Todd Gordon as his crew chief. From 2020 onwards, Paul Wolfe replaced Gordon. The new pair hit it off almost instantaneously as they won two of the first four Cup Series races. This versatility on Logano’s part has been visible later as well. During the 2024 playoff run, he was almost disqualified from the Round of 8. Despite this near-ejection, Logano still put on his best show and went on to win his third Cup Series title. Then last weekend at Texas, Wolfe did not take a desirable pit box as Logano started in 27th, and that cost them a two-tire pit stop. Despite that, Logano held on till the end for the win. And according to Wolfe, this resilience and ability to execute is what separates them from the competition.

In a recent interview with Sirius XM NASCAR, Paul Wolfe shed light on Homestead-Miami coming back as the championship venue in 2026. He boldly underlined Joey Logano‘s ability to overcome any diversity. He said, “Let’s be honest, when we get to the Championship race, if the 22’s in it, I don’t care where we go. I just wouldn’t count us out. With that mindset, we’re open to the challenge of whoever that may be. I think it’s good for our sport, I like the idea of it moving around. It keeps things fresh, and it keeps everyone on their toes. Yeah, I like short tracks, it’s our strength. But we like challenges and know that we can challenge anyone when it comes down to those types of situations.”

Paul Wolfe, a three-time Cup Series title-winning crew chief, called his 500th career race as a crew chief at Phoenix Raceway in March. He said that Phoenix has undoubtedly suited Joey Logano, while Homestead has been good for his teammate Ryan Blaney‘s No. 12 team. “Obviously, Phoenix has been very good to us. We have a super strong short track program. But yeah, if I was picking a track, would it be Homestead for the 22 team? No. But I think we can also look back and see how well the 12 has been there. He could have won there the last two races. He’s saying Phoenix is his strength, but the 12 was just as good as Homestead. I think with that being said, we know what it takes to be fast there. Would the 22 winnings be there? No, maybe not.”

Yet Joey Logano’s presence is still undeniable. We have already seen how he can weather any type of storm, ranging from dominating the playoffs to dodging crashes in Texas. At this time, we can only remember what Paul Wolfe said about him after winning the 2022 Cup Series title: “Once Joey puts on that helmet, all he is focusing on is driving that race car. There were many moments where there were what I would call tougher decisions strategy-wise and Joey was nowhere to be had for a conversation about how we should go about this. It was like, ‘Just tell me what to do.’”

Yet Team Penske may need to roll up its sleeves for Homestead-Miami. The 1.5-miler has never gone easy on Cup drivers.

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The true test of skill

Ever since Homestead-Miami Speedway first appeared on the NASCAR schedule in 1995, people knew what it was. Only the cream of the field surged to victory, starting with Dale Jarrett’s inaugural Xfinity win. The South Florida track first hosted the NASCAR championship in 2002, when Tony Stewart became Cup Series champ for the first time. ‘Smoke’ won all three of his Cup crowns there. That included his breathtaking 2011 title march that he capped in a tiebreaker with Carl Edwards. Homestead was also the site of other champions’ title pursuits – Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, and so many more. All of them were at the top of the Cup Series grid and showed the skill that Homestead demanded of them.

The track has a well-worn surface and progressive banking that produces multiple racing grooves. Ben Kennedy, who rolled out the championship rotation news, had himself run five national series starts at the intermediate track. He commented on Homestead’s challenges: “I think it’s really a racer’s race track… I think the beauty of it is its age now. The asphalt continues to wear every single year it bakes in the sun. There’s a ton of sand, and it’s really turned it into this multi-groove race track. You see drivers will start in the bottom, they migrate to the middle, some of them will go to the top, so I think it’s going to put on some really exciting finishes for our championship and I think it’s going to be fun to see the drivers’ reaction from it, too.”

Evidently, Joey Logano and his team would have their hands full in taming Homestead. But before they draw a game plan for Homestead, the #22 team will have the chance to add the fourth title this year as the championship race is in Phoenix.