Reports: Joey Logano headed to Penske to drive the No. 22
Multiple outlets are reporting that Joey Logano is headed to Penske to take the seat vacated by AJ Allmendinger earlier this season. It's part of an ongoing merry-go-round of seats that will apparently see Matt Kenseth take over Logano's old ride at Gibbs and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. assume Kenseth's former seat. The odd man out is Sam Hornish Jr., who has been driving the No. 22 since Allmendinger's suspension for violating NASCAR's substance abuse policy.
Logano earned the nickname "Sliced Bread" (as in "Greatest thing since ... ") from Mark Martin early in his racing career, but has struggled to live up to such high praise. He has two wins in 136 career Sprint Cup starts, and has never finished a season ranked higher than 16th. Given that Home Depot is one of NASCAR's highest-profile sponsors and had grown accustomed to victory lane with Tony Stewart, Logano's inability to hit similar heights contributed to the end of his time at Joe Gibbs Racing.
Still, Logano is starting to assert himself as a driver. He's had high-profile garage dustups with both Kevin Harvick and Ryan Newman, and could perhaps benefit from a change in scenery. At Penske, he'll be teamed with Brad Keselowski, another young driver albeit one who's found more success early in his career, and the two could be a fearsome tandem for years to come. Could be.
This year, he currently sits at 18th but has a chance to reach the Chase if he can win Saturday night's Richmond race. A win there would give him two on the season and vault him over Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards, among others.
None of the sides has made a public comment on the story, but the news is expected to be announced this week.
