· Joey Logano started ninth in the KC Masterpiece 400 at Kansas Speedway. Logano moved forward from the ninth starting spot in the AAA Insurance Ford Fusion, working his way into the top-five by lap 14 and maintaining that position until the competition caution on lap 30. Crew chief Todd Gordon elected to make an air pressure adjustment on the first stop to aid a loose on entry, tight in the center of the corner handling condition.

· Logano ran inside the top-five until the conclusion of Stage 1. He reported he was still free in clean air, but tight in traffic. The team made wedge and air pressure adjustments on the stop during the stage break caution to give Logano the entry security needed for the second stage. A long run brought a green flag pit stop for the AAA Insurance crew on lap 125 where the team made an air pressure adjustment plus added tape to the nose of the car to help Logano turn better in the corners. He finished fifth when Stage 2 concluded on lap 162.

· Through the early portion of the final stage, Logano battled a car that was too free on entry and tight in the center. As the segment rolled on, Logano reported the balance had improved, but lacked overall speed to compete with the other race leaders.

· Logano pitted with less than 60 laps to go with a car that was still too loose. A caution on lap 238 gave Logano the opportunity to pit four tires and adjustments plus the team gained a position on pit road, moving Logano up to fourth position.

· The sixth and final caution on lap 249 set up a split strategy scenario for the field. Most of the leaders pitted, but Logano and a handful of other competitors remained on the track. Logano cycled into the race lead for the ensuing restart on lap 252, but he dropped to second when Martin Truex Jr. and Erik Jones stacked him three-wide entering Turn 1. However, a multi-car incident would bring out the red flag for extensive cleanup less than a lap into the run.

· Logano would battle the rest of the race against cars with fresher tires. He overcame the disadvantage to score a third-place finish with the No. 22 AAA Insurance Ford Fusion. Logano is second in the MENCS driver standings, 12 points behind the leader.

 

“I really just had two bad restarts in a row, which is frustrating to me. As the leader I feel like I probably took the wrong lane, which cost me the lead in the first place, and then the last time I was trying to time him (Truex Jr.) on the bottom and he just read it really well and kind of stopped me, and then I spun the tires. The car behind me wasn’t the best of pushers. I just hate being that close. It’s a great run for AAA and Team Penske, but when you’re that close to winning it’s pretty frustrating as a driver and probably as a team we’re all probably a little frustrated right now.”