Logano will trade paint for a win at Martinsville

To racing purist, a place like Martinsville Speedway is what the sport is all about.

The slower 80-90 mph speeds on the half-mile Virginia oval make for some exciting “boys have at it” racing, as drivers can get aggressive, “trade paint” and spin one another out in effort to get to the lead, something they’d never think of trying at 200 mph on a superspeedway.

It is here where a driver such as Joey Logano excels. Since 2018, the two-time Cup Series champion has posted some very solid numbers, including one win, five top-five finishes, nine top-10s and two poles. He’s finished out of the top 10 only once – his 19th place showing in the 2019 spring race.

His one victory in that time frame came the previous fall and it was classic short-track racing. Trailing Martin Truex Jr. on the final lap, Logano bumped his No. 22 Penske Ford past Truex’s fishtailing No. 87 Furniture Row Chevy on his way to the checkered flag in an exciting finish.

In last year’s spring race, Logano wasn’t as lucky. Sitting on William Byron’s back bumper going into the final lap, he was unable to mount a charge to the front and wound up finishing second.

The defending Cup champ will return to Martinsville to vie against a field including Ross Chastain, Chase Elliott, Kyle Busch, Ryan Blaney, Truex and Byron in the 2023 spring race, which airs Sunday, April 16, on Fox.

Full name: Joseph Thomas

Logano

Birth date: May 24, 1990

Height/weight: 6 feet, 1 inch/185 pounds

Car: No. 22 Ford Mustang

GT Team: Team Penske

They

Birthplace: Middletown, Conn.

Sprint Cup wins: 31

Top 10s: 256

Poles: 27

Honors and achievements: 2009 Cup Series Rookie of the Year; 2015 Daytona 500 winner; 2016 NASCAR Cup All-Star Race winner; NASCAR Cup champion (2018, 2022)