Joey Logano’s Darlington Struggles Put Him on the Chase Bubble

The new Chase format raises the cost of inconsistency for the No. 22 team.

Overview

Logano finished 33rd at Darlington, three laps down, after radioing that he had no front turn and no rear grip in a car that simply lacked speed.
He is now tied for 16th in the standings with Michael McDowell, which places him on the playoff cutline under NASCAR’s 2026 rules.
Darlington used NASCAR’s short-track package at the track for the first time, which Yahoo Sports noted could make the result an outlier rather than a trend.
Kevin Harvick pointed out that Logano was lapped three times while Team Penske teammates ran in the top 10, suggesting the issue was specific to the No. 22 setup.
Denny Hamlin voiced empathy by recalling his own off-weekend in 2013, as fan reactions questioned whether the new format will punish Logano unless he finds race-winning pace.