Joey Logano started fourth and finished sixth in the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford Mustang on Saturday afternoon’s Alsco 300 at Kentucky Speedway. Logano, provided a great push to polesitter and eventual race winner Kyle Busch to move to the second position but a caution flag flew before the leaders reached the first turn on the opening lap. After restarting third, Logano ran inside the top-five for the opening 45 laps, ultimately finishing third at the end of the first stage. The balance in the No. 22 Ford was decent, but Logano felt he needed more security at the entry of both corners. With the field working split strategies, the team would restart 15th and have to work forward through the second stage. In traffic, the Discount Tire Mustang was became even looser than it was in clean air, so the team again adjusted on the handling of the with small chassis adjustments. The team also elected to take two tires, but a slow stop due to a lug nut jam prevented them from getting the clean air they were seeking. On the restart, Logano lost several positions, dropping as far as seventh before working forward to the third position. The team remained on a two-tire strategy for the remainder of the event, including the final stop at lap 166. Logano brought the Discount Tire Ford home in the sixth position, providing another solid points day as the team continues their pursuit of another NASCAR XFINITY Series Owner’s Championship.
“At the end we really needed tires, we ran almost the entire race on the same left side tires and I think that cost us a bit at the end. We had a good car but were just a little off on the tire strategy at the end. Team Penske brought two fast cars to the track this weekend so that’s a positive that we can take and build on.”