Joey Logano Not in Sync With Denny Hamlin on ‘Races vs Championship’ Debate in NASCAR

Team Penske driver Joey Logano is not convinced with former teammate Denny Hamlin’s reasoning that NASCAR race wins hold as much value if not more than championships in the sport’s modern day and age. The two-time champion expressed his views recently during a pre-race press conference leading up to the 2024 Coca-Cola 600.

Ahead of the 600-mile event at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Logano said, “In any sport that’s mainly what you’re measured by. You think of basketball or football, they don’t ask what was your winning percentage or how many wins did you have. How many rings do you have is what everyone asks.”

The Team Penske driver also compared race wins in NASCAR to football games and how racecar drivers are always at a disadvantage going into any given event.

He said, “Race wins are a lot harder than football wins. Football game’s a 50-50 chance, we’re one in 40. The odds are not in your favor. I think you can measure somebody for sure for their success on how many wins they have but I think that the championship thing is always been a very big deal I think in sports in general.”

How do Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin compare in terms of NASCAR wins?

While a NASCAR Cup Series championship has long eluded Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin over his years in the sport, the 23XI owner certainly has the upper hand on Joey Logano in terms of wins in the Cup Series.

Hamlin has 54 career Cup Series wins to his name compared to Logano’s 32. Both drivers made their debuts in the top tier of American stock car racing around the same time. Hamlin started full-time in 2006 whereas Logano made his full-time start in 2009.

The statistics certainly paint a picture of how the JGR driver has not been the luckiest when the time has come to lift the biggest trophy. With 54 wins to his name, Hamlin is amongst serious company on the all-time wins list in NASCAR, tied with former driver Lee Petty.

The only differentiator between Hamlin and Petty’s number is the latter’s three Cup Series championships.

It remains to be seen whether Hamlin can clinch the title this year, having started the season on the right foot.