Richmond Int’l Raceway Preview

• LOGANO A TRUE YOUNG GUN: With his 24th birthday looming next month, Joey Logano is still considered one of NASCAR’s “young guns.” At just 23 years old, younger than some of today’s rookie drivers, Logano has an amazing five full years of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series experience and four Sprint Cup Series wins, along with eight poles and 64 top-10 finishes. Logano has also put himself in a great position to qualify for this year’s Chase with his win at Texas earlier this month.
• LAPS UP FRONT: Along with his Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski, Logano is the only other driver to have led laps in seven of the eight races run so far this season. The only race where Logano did not lead laps was at Auto Club Speedway, as he had to start from the back of the field and he raced his way into the top three before experiencing a mechanical issue. Logano’s 313 laps led in 2014 ranks third among series leaders and is only 10 laps shy of his previous full-season record, which came last year when he led 323 laps all season long.
• A TOP-TWO NUMBER: Another impressive number for Logano this season is his position in the driver rating category. Often compared to quarterback ratings in football or earned run average (ERA) in baseball, the driver rating takes into account several factors such as wins, finishes, top-15 results, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under the green flag, fastest laps, most laps led and lead-lap finishes, with a maximum value of 150. Logano is currently second in driver rating with a 105.2 mark, trailing only Jimmie Johnson, who has a 106.0.
• STILL QUALIFYING UP FRONT: Logano continued his streak of impressive qualifying efforts last race at Darlington by earning a second-place starting spot, the fourth time he’s qualified third or better this season. He also continued his streak of being the only driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series to have advanced to the final round in each of the seven “knockout” qualifying sessions run this season. His 8.0 average starting position (including the Daytona 500) is the best of his career and second-best among all drivers. Logano has an average starting spot of 4.1 over the last seven races, second only to teammate Keselowski, who has an average starting position of 4.0 over that same span.
• DIG SAFE, CALL 811: April is National Safe Digging Month, and No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil/Hertz Ford Fusion driver Logano will run ‘Call 811’ logos on the car during all three races in April to encourage fans to call 811 before starting outdoor digging projects. As part of the effort, the Common Ground Alliance will give one race fan the chance to watch Joey Logano race at the Quicken Loans 400 at Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, AZ on November 9, 2014. Visit www.flyawaytophoenix.com to enter and read official rules. No purchase necessary. Sweepstakes ends August 31, 2014.

HOW DO YOU FEEL AFTER THE FIRST WEEKEND OFF OF THE SEASON?
“It is refreshing, but at the same time, I would rather have been in a race car somewhere. I just love to race. There is really no getting around it for me. I couldn’t get my fix last weekend, so I spent some time out at the local go-kart track racing with my buddies. I just love to race. But the schedule is long and grueling, so it’s especially good for the guys in the shop to get a weekend off and get to spend some time with their families. That is really one of the most important things about the off weekend. We put in a lot of time away from home, so for the guys to get a break and get recharged is really important.”

HOW COMFORTABLE ARE YOU WITH A WIN UNDER YOUR BELT TO PUT YOU IN A GOOD POSITION TO MAKE THE CHASE?
“Well, the goal is to go out there and win more races before the Chase starts so you don’t have to worry, right? But I just don’t know if you will see more than 16 winners in a season. Not to say that there aren’t more than 16 cars that can win a race, because if you go down through the list, I think you will find that there probably are. But you can’t forget about the points either and I don’t think anyone really is. If you aren’t going to win the race, or you don’t have a car that is capable and you don’t think you can take the chance to get that win, then you are still going to try and finish fifth rather than 15th. You want to get those points and have them at the end of the year. But ultimately, you want to win enough races to not have to worry about points at all.”