“When the pay window opens up in the playoffs, the 22 [team] shows up.” Joey Logano and his team proved that when the need is of the hour, they can reach astronomical heights of success. During the Ally 400 race in Nashville, the cream of the field melted away in five overtime restarts. But Logano and his crew chief, Paul Wolfe, gambled on fuel mileage and Lady Luck beamed at them. The same fortune played out in Las Vegas, all because of the team’s solid drive.

That becomes more significant considering Logano’s near-dismissal from the playoffs. Tyler Reddick outmaneuvered him at the Charlotte Roval by a single point. But within three hours, Joey Logano was back in the game due to Alex Bowman’s disqualification – and that was all his crew chief needed to reset his championship-winning mindset.

Joey Logano’s crew chief is buoyant

The Nashville spectacle came out of the blue, as Paul Wolfe expected the 20-gallon fuel tank to last no more than 80 laps. But the No. 22 Ford sped through an extra 31 laps due to the interminable overtime periods. However, Wolfe came to Las Vegas well-prepared with the same fuel mileage strategy. While other playoff drivers fumbled with wrecks and pit stop slip-ups, Wolfe instructed Joey Logano to make a final pit stop on lap 195. That allowed the driver to gain the upper hand over Christopher Bell’s dominant run and eventually beat him by a slight 0.662-second margin.

This flawless strategy immediately restored Joey Logano‘s hopes for a third Bill France Cup. After winning in Las Vegas, he playfully nicknamed Wolfe as ‘ Big Ball Paul’ considering his incredible leadership of the 22 team. Wolfe responded, “He was pretty excited as you can imagine.” Then he went on to profess his winning mindset. “But ultimately…we were prepping. We didn’t prep any different coming here. Knowing that we were racing for the driver’s championship as well, we were putting our best cars we knew how to put forward for ourselves in the 12. And my team continued to prepare just like that.” 

Joey Logano apologized for taking advantage of Alex Bowman’s misfortune. Yet, in line with Wolfe’s reasoning, he also prioritized the 22 team’s effort over luck. “I don’t believe in luck, so I know it’s not that. But there must be something, mindset somewhere within…somehow like us together, something’s different.” He admitted that his setbacks this year were plentiful, but his tackling those problems was most significant. “Honestly, you gotta roll with the punches. It’s so simple but you just gotta keep going…Don’t get me wrong, I’m human. I ride the waves and when it’s down, I’m down. There’s no doubt. But the get back up attitude is the most important thing to happen.”

And Joey Logano is hoping to help out his teammate to ride out the current storm.

Team Penske is charging united

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Joey Logano’s seat in the Championship 4 race is guaranteed, regardless of how the 22 Ford team performs in Homestead-Miami or Martinsville. That means the team also has ample time to prepare for Phoenix and harness Paul Wolfe’s prowess for a championship bid. Logano admitted to this glaring advantage over his playoff rivals, who will keep struggling to book their seats in the elite four. In the meantime, he can focus and support his teammate, defending Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney. With four DNFs in the last nine races, the No. 12 Ford is in a dire situation. The Reddick crash in Vegas got him too, and he finished a disappointing 32nd place.

So heading over to the Straight Talk Wireless 400 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Logano has his goals clear. “We can’t finish worse than fourth in points. You look at the next two races — we can be a little more aggressive from a strategy or setup standpoint.” And helping his teammate to keep up for a united Team Penske front also figures large on Logano’s mind. “If we can help our teammate get into the Championship 4 and have 50 percent of the cars, that would be great.” He added, “You just keep plugging away because you never know what’s going to come your way… Now we’re in and the last thing you want to do is waste this opportunity.”

Evidently, under Paul Wolfe’s leadership and with the 22 team’s grit, Joey Logano might fetch that third Cup title for Team Penske.