MENCS: Logano moves Truex Jr. to win at Martinsville

Joey Logano clinched his playoff spot in the Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway with his win at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday.

Logano bumped Martin Truex Jr. out of the way for the win after Truex Jr. took the lead on the final lap. Both Logano and Truex Jr. raced each other hard in the closing laps of Sunday’s race but on the final lap coming to the finish line, Logano would bump Truex Jr. out of the way giving Joey Logano and Team 22 their first victory at Martinsville.

Martin Truex Jr. was not pleased with Logano’s move on the final lap.

“He may have won the battle but he ain’t gonna win the damn war,” Truex Jr. said.

Truex cleanly went around Joey Logano in Turns 1 and Turns 2 on the final lap. But given that the winner would automatically clinch their spot into the Championship 4 at Homestead, Logano moved Martin Truex Jr. out of the way for the win.

“I was next to him for six laps, I never knocked him out of the way. We were going to race hard for it in my book and i cleared him, fair and square. We weren’t even banging doors for me to pass him. He just drove into the back of me and knocked me out of the way. That’s short track racing but what goes around comes around.” Martin Truex Jr. said following Sunday’s race.

Joey Logano however says it was just short track racing at its finest.

“It’s racing. It’s what we’ve got to do to get there. We’ve got to get there first.

Some aren’t going to like it but i’m a hard racer.” Logano said.

Rounding out the top five were Denny Hamlin in second, Martin Truex Jr. in third, Kyle Busch in fourth and Brad Keselowski in fifth.

Rounding out the top ten were Kurt Busch in sixth, Chase Elliott in seventh, Ryan Newman in eighth, Daniel Suarez in ninth and Kevin Harvick in tenth.

The Monster Energy Cup Series will head into Texas Motor Speedway next Sunday with live coverage of the AAA Texas 500 beginning at 3:00 PM Eastern on NBCSN and PRN Radio.

 

Stage 1 Winner: Denny Hamlin

Stage 2 Winner: Joey Logano

Race Winner: Joey Logano

 

Playoff Standings:

1. Joey Logano (Martinsville win)

2. Kyle Busch, 4,104

3. Martin Truex Jr., 4,083

4. Kevin Harvick, 4,083

5. Kurt Busch, 4,048

6. Chase Elliott, 4,042

7. Aric Almirola, 4,033

8. Clint Bowyer, 4,031

Matthew Jackson
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