NASCAR takeaways: Found him! Joey Logano reemerges at North Wilkesboro
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Oh, there he is.
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For the first five months of the NASCAR season, three-time Cup Series champion Joey Logano sat mostly dormant. Two top-fives in 20 races. Six top-10s. Only 116 laps led.
As a result, he resided 17th in the standings, one spot below The Chase cutline.
But then came July 19 and the Window World 450 at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Vintage Joey Logano reemerged.
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He led 323 laps, his most ever in a Cup event, and held off a hard-charging Denny Hamlin. Only six drivers ended on the lead lap.
“A win anywhere at this point would’ve sounded great, but coming here to North Wilkesboro is awesome,” Logano said.
Here are three takeaways from North Wilkesboro's first points race since 1996.
1. Joey Logano must love North Wilkesboro
No one should be too surprised.
Even though Logano had not seen Victory Lane since May 2025, his history at North Wilkesboro speaks for itself.
He placed 10th during the first All-Star Race at the historic track in 2023. In 2024, he won the exhibition, pacing the field for 199 of the 200 laps. And in 2025, he fell just short of a back-to-back, settling into second with 139 laps in front.
Nothing changed on Sunday.
Logano sped to third in Stage 1, claimed a Stage 2 win and jumped to 15th in the standings. Hamlin challenged him throughout Stage 3, but Logano stayed ahead.
“I think it’s just something that clicks for us,” Logano said. “(Crew chief Paul Wolfe) put together a good car, and I feel like I know exactly what I need to go fast around this place, and he’s able to give it to me.”
Logano now owns 38 career wins. He is the first Ford driver besides Ryan Blaney to earn a win this season.
2. NASCAR In-Season Challenge finals set for Ryan Blaney, Todd Gilliland
On the subject of Blaney, he’s in contention for a million dollars next week.
He and Todd Gilliland will square off in the finals of the NASCAR In-Season Challenge. The driver with the better finish secures the prize.
At North Wilkesboro, third-seeded Blaney finished 11th, beating 10th-seeded Christopher Bell, who took a 19th. As the 25th seed, Gilliland rode an eighth-place rank past fourth-seeded Chase Elliott and his 17th.
Blaney will be the favorite. The Team Penske star has not missed the top 11 in any race since April. Gilliland has only three such finishes this year.
3. Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis is next race on NASCAR schedule
NASCAR gets even older next week.
After competing at North Wilkesboro, which opened in 1947, the Cup Series travels to Indiana and visits Indianapolis Motor Speedway. That circuit unlocked its gates for the first time in 1909, nearly 40 years before NASCAR’s inception.
Drivers will run the Brickyard 400. And for the first time this month, they’re back to afternoon racing. The last three weeks have seen evening green flags — and sometimes 2 a.m. finishes. (Looking at you, Atlanta.)
The proceedings will begin at 2 p.m. on July 26 and air on TNT.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR takeaways: Found him! Joey Logano reemerges at North Wilkesboro