LAS VEGAS – Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski were side by side off the fourth turn, two teammates fighting for the last burst of speed on the final lap Sunday afternoon at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Logano barely managed to block Keselowski’s move, and the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series champion hung on for his first win of the new season and his first in Sin City.
“That was more intense than I wanted it to be,” said Logano, who drove the Team Penske No. 22 Ford Mustang to the 22nd win of his Cup Series career.
“There’s been plenty of times here when we’ve led a lot of laps here, but we’ve never won and that’s the most important stat to have,” Logano added. “Something happens at the end, and Brad becomes the fastest car and he wins. I looked in the mirror, and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is happening again.'”
But after narrowly answering Keselowski’s last-lap passing attempt, Logano celebrated his victory in NASCAR’s first race under its full new rules package designed to foster tight racing and excitement.