Maybe he was hibernating.
Or maybe defrosting.
Whatever it was, Joey Logano spent the majority of the first four months of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season as a nonfactor.
But then the three-time champ rediscovered his mojo.
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Logano won again on Aug. 15. He led 95 laps, including the last 25, and held off Chase Briscoe for the Cook Out 400 victory at Richmond Raceway. It was his second triumph in the last four races and the continuation of a recent heater.
In the last six weeks, Logano jumped from 20th to ninth in the standings.
“Don’t let the boys get hot,” he said afterward.
Too late.
1. Is Joey Logano a NASCAR championship contender? Good question
Before finding Victory Lane at North Wilkesboro last month, Logano had two top-fives all season. He went from late March to mid-July without recording a single one.
Now, he has three in the last four races.
Check out his finishes since the calendar flipped to July: 12th, ninth, first, third, 14th, first.
In a post-Richmond interview, USA Sports broadcaster Marty Snider asked Logano if it’s time for people to view the No. 22 Penske Ford team as a title contender again?
“Oh, I think so,” Logano said.
It’s a worthwhile question to ponder.
But there are 12 events remaining this year — a long way to go. Logano will have to keep this momentum rolling.
2. Two-time Richmond winner Austin Dillon has quiet Saturday night
Austin Dillon entered Saturday with more hype than usual.
For good reason.
The Richard Childress Racing veteran had won the last two Richmond races. In 2025, he prevailed convincingly, leading 107 laps.
But his three-peat attempt failed. He settled into 19th, never touching the lead.
“We struggled with the car’s balance the whole night despite the best efforts of the entire team,” Dillon said. “Nothing they did or I did seemed to work. While we were tight in Stage 1, we trended loose the remainder of the race. I couldn’t turn, and I couldn’t get down the straightaway.”
He was mathematically eliminated from playoff pursuit.
3. NASCAR returns to Sunday for next race at New Hampshire
Back to normal NASCAR business hours next weekend.
It’ll be a Sunday afternoon race, the Dollar Tree 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The green flag will arrive a few minutes after 3 p.m. for the second-to-last mile post of the regular season and the table-setter for Daytona International Speedway’sCoke Zero Sugar 400. USA Network will provide the TV coverage.
In case you were wondering, Logano has two career wins at New Hampshire, though his most recent one came 12 years ago. He ranked second, 32nd and fourth the last three years there.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR takeaways: Is Joey Logano a legit title contender after Richmond?