“It’s a Bit of a Challenge”: Joey Logano on NASCAR Next Gen Car at Gateway Despite Lack of Horsepower Consensus

2022 NASCAR Cup Series champion Joey Logano recently spoke about the Next Gen Cup Series car and its peculiarities at the upcoming race at the World Wide Technology Raceway. The seventh-generation car which has been vastly criticized for its lack of power amongst other issues is working well at the track formerly known as Gateway Motorsports Park.

Touching on how the lower horsepower levels of the Next Gen car are not as obvious at WWT Raceway ahead of this Sunday’s Enjoy Illinois 300, Logano spoke about how drivers have to manage throttle inputs coming into turn 1 at the track. He told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, “One thing that’s really unique about Gateway is that you downshift twice in turn one and so when you leave the corner off of turn two you have a lot of horsepower.”

2022 @WWTRaceway winner @joeylogano is looking forward to going back to St. Louis this weekend.

🗯️ “It’s hard to put the throttle down, and that’s something that’s a little more unique than most racetracks we go to these days.”

More → https://t.co/keYsFmuVzu pic.twitter.com/7pQCWzngq9

— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) June 1, 2024

The #22 Ford Mustang driver further elaborated on his thoughts, completely contrary to what the Next Gen Cup car is usually known for these days, and said, “It’s hard to put the throttle down and that’s something that’s a little more unique than most racetracks we go to these days where it feels like we’re underpowered. It’s a bit of a challenge to get the throttle down and use it all which is good. It’s one of the reasons why there is good racing here.”

Several drivers up and down the field have advocated for more power from NASCAR with little success to be found. The governing body has cited issues surrounding the costs of higher horsepower engines as the reason for the reluctance. However, official team engine builders have claimed little to no jump in costs from the sport’s existing engine package.

Joey Logano previews upcoming Enjoy Illinois 300, looks back at previous finishes at WWT Raceway

Team Penske driver Joey Logano also recently spoke about World Wide Techology Raceway as being one of the #22 crew’s strong suites during the NASCAR Cup Series calendar.  The 2022 season saw Logano clinch victory at the track in a year which also saw him clinch a championship trophy, whereas he managed to finish in the top-3 last year.

Touching on his performance at the upcoming venue, Logano elaborated to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and said, “Gateway honestly has been one of our best tracks. We got a first and a third there. Running position is up there the whole time as well.”

It remains to be seen how well the 34-year-old driver performs during this NASCAR’s return to the Madison, Illinois track this Sunday.