Logano Scores Sixth Top-Five Finish of 2014 at Kansas
May 11, 2014
THE RACE
5-Hour Energy 400 at Kansas Speedway (1.5-mile speedway, Kansas City, Kan.)
Saturday, May 10, 2014
THE RESULTS
The No. 22 AAA Ford Fusion
Driver: Joey Logano
Starting Position: 2
Finish Position: 4
Driver's Points Position: 6
THE RACE REVIEW
· Joey Logano qualified the No. 22 AAA Insurance Ford Fusion in the second position for Saturday evening’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway, his third front-row start of the season.
· Logano settled into second place as the race began, fighting a condition that saw his car handle loose going into the turns and tight coming out of the corners.
· Logano fell back to sixth place after a four-tire pit stop while others took just two tires. Logano’s car continued to run extremely loose, which kept him from advancing towards the front.
· Despite the ill-handling conditions, Logano was able to work his way to the front of the field for the first time on lap 103.
· Once he got up front, Logano ran inside the top five for the remainder of the evening, except during green-flag pit stops.
· Logano was able to lead the race on six different occasions for 63 laps. By leading laps once again, Logano has now paced the field in 10 of the 11 races this season.
· As the race wound down, Logano slipped back a couple of positions as the No. 22 AAA Fusion’s handling continued to be an issue in traffic.
· Logano was able to hold onto fourth place as the checkered flags waved to end the race.
· The top-five finish was Logano’s sixth of the season, best among all Sprint Cup Series drivers.
· With the result, he remained sixth in the Sprint Cup Series point standings, 48 points behind Gordon.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
JOEY LOGANO, NO. 22 AAA FUSION
YOU HAD ONE OF THE TOP-THREE CARS TONIGHT AND WERE ABLE TO LEAD A LOT OF LAPS. HOW DID THE RACE DEVELOP AT THE END?
“It was all strategy at the end.. Our AAA Fusion was fast, we just weren’t fast enough I guess. I think we were probably the third best car out there and we finished fourth so I guessed it all worked itself out. I was really good on the short runs toward the middle part of the race. That last restart, the 4 and 24 (cars) just took off and left me. I was like, ‘Man, wait for me!’ Those guys were quick. We missed our adjustments a little bit trying to keep up with the track. I feel like we should have finished third. The 5
(car) got by me when I was trying to get around a lap car and I am disappointed in myself there. Overall, it is a solid top-five finish again, but we are disappointed with that. The funny thing is most people would look at a fourth-place finish and be happy and we are a little disappointed. I guess that’s a good thing when you are disappointed with top-five finishes, because we want to win these races. We will keep that momentum going and have some fun next week in Charlotte and go for a million bucks.”