DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) – Joey Logano had a shot to win the NASCAR championship last year. A flawed late pit stop cost him the chance, and he went into the offseason determined to get back into contention again.
A win in the season-opening Daytona 500 on Sunday gave Logano the head start he wanted. His victory earned him an automatic berth into the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, and put him at the front of the field after a week dominated by the biggest names in NASCAR.
He was motivated by a sign in the Team Penske gymnasium that reads, “Effort equals results.” That one phrase inspired Logano to put in countless hours watching video of past superspeedway races with his crew chief and his spotter.
“We did everything we possibly could to prepare ourselves for this race,” Logano said. “It’s so cool to see that phrase come to life: Effort equals results.”
More than two years after nearly washing out of one of NASCAR’s top rides, Logano won the biggest race of his career by outlasting the field over a white-knuckle final 50 miles of three-wide racing.