Logano Finishes 17th at Daytona Speedway

July 7, 2014


THE RACE
 
Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway (2.5-mile speedway, Daytona, Fla.)
Sunday, July 6, 2014
 
THE RESULTS

No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford
Driver:  Joey Logano
Starting Position:28
Finish Position: 17
Driver's Points Position: 6

 
THE RACE REVIEW
 
· Joey Logano and the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Fusion team qualified 28th for Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.  Rain canceled the final two rounds of “knockout” qualifying on Friday and the starting lineup was based on the results of the first round.

· Rain pushed back the start of the Saturday night event to Sunday afternoon.

· As the race began, Logano jumped to the high line on the track to begin his charge to the front.  At first, the strategy didn’t gain Logano any positions.  However, being in the back worked to his advantage on lap 20 when the first multi-car accident happened in front of the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford. Logano was able to slow down in time to miss the wreck.

· As the green flag was displayed to restart the race, the earlier strategy paid off as Logano was able to work his way into the top 15 and eventually the top 10 by lap 30.

· Once the race settled into a rhythm, it was evident that Logano had one of the cars to beat as he worked his way up to third place.

· Through a round of green flag pit stops, Logano continued to run third, as he planned to run among the leaders before making his move later in the race.

· After a race restart just before the lap 100 mark, Logano was running in the third position and making his way into second place when he was hit in the right rear by the spinning car of Kasey Kahne.  The contact turned the Shell-Pennzoil Ford head on into the wall, causing significant damage to Logano’s car.

· The Shell-Pennzoil team was able work on the No. 22 Ford during several cautions, making significant repairs to the car, while still keeping Logano on the lead lap and fast in the draft.

· With just under 50 remaining in the race, more rain doused the track and officials eventually ruled the event complete with Logano running 17th.

· The finish moved Logano up one spot in the Sprint Cup Series point standings to sixth.
 

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING

JOEY LOGANO, NO. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD

DID YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WERE IN POSITION FOR A GOOD FINISH UNTIL YOU GOT SWEPT UP IN ONE OF THE BIG ACCIDENTS?

“We had a really strong Shell-Pennzoil Ford today.  I don’t really know what happened in that wreck.  I was just minding my own business, driving straight down the backstretch and the next thing I know, I’m being turned head on into the outside wall in Turn 3.  I guess the 16 (car) got into the 5 (car) and turned him into us.  There was nothing I could do.  I couldn’t even see it coming.  It’s just a product of this type of racing though.  When you are in the pack, you are just at the mercy of everyone else. You really rely on luck and everyone else not making a mistake. In a way, I’m glad to get out of here with the finish we had, but I kind of wish we could have went back to green (flag racing) , because even with the damage, I think we still could have finished in the top five. The car was fast. “