On-track performance is the only part of racing the fans see, but there is a mental aspect to the sport that often presents tougher challenges, especially when it comes to navigating a season filled with challenges.
Drivers question their ability, crew chiefs question the direction they’re taking the team, owners question if they have the right personnel, and maintaining morale is critical.
“I don’t know how anyone can struggle at times like we did this year and not doubt are we doing this right, are we ever going to win again?” veteran Team Penske crew chief Paul Wolfe says about the No. 22 team. “It’s not about what we did last week, it’s about what are we doing right now. I’m good at trying to keep a level head and keeping everyone around me the same way. I don’t get too emotional over the highs and lows.”
Still, for three-time NASCAR Cup champion Joey Logano and Wolfe, the 2026 season has been a tough one, filled with struggles that left many people asking regularly what was wrong with the No. 22 team. Logano finished 30th or worse, sometimes multiple laps down, in seven of the first 20 races. After finishing 34th at Pocono, four laps down to winner Denny Hamlin, Logano began improving, but it wasn’t until his ninth-place finish at Atlanta and his first victory in 45 races at North Wilkesboro that the Connecticut driver and his team performed as expected.
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Joey Logano (left) and his Team Penske crew chief Paul Wolfe.
Wolfe noted it was Logano’s experience and how he and the team handled the week-to-week meetings and preparation that’s allowed the 36-year-old driver to remain positive.
Team Penske Vice Chairman Walt Czarnecki said he had some “candid conversations” with Logano over the last 10 or 12 weeks and the driver never lost his positive attitude.
“He’s frustrated. He’s expressed it,” Czarnecki said. “… but he hasn’t lost his composure. He’s very analytical about it.”
Logano said he would always be honest about a situation, and he was a “very realistic person.”
“There’s definitely a lot of challenging conversations, a lot of things looking inward at yourself, figuring out what are we missing, where is it at, what am I doing wrong,” Logano said. “Those things are all real. We’re human. We can come here and try to BS everyone about how confident everyone is. Obviously, those Mondays after a bad race, you’re looking inward first before anything else, as you should. Those are real conversations sometimes with yourself. You just keep fighting and keep grinding away. It’s how I’ve done it my whole career.”
A North Carolina native, Deb Williams is an award-winning motorsports journalist who is in her fourth decade covering auto racing. In addition to covering the sport for United Press International, she has written motorsports articles for several newspapers, magazines and websites including espnW.com, USA Today, and The Charlotte Observer. Her awards include the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence, two-time National Motorsports Press Association writer of the year, and two-time recipient of the Russ Catlin award. She also has won an award in the North Carolina Press Association’s sports feature category. During her career, Deb has been managing editor of GT Motorsports magazine and was with Winston Cup Scene and NASCAR Winston Cup Scene for 18 years, serving as the publication’s editor for 10 years. In 2024 she was inducted into the NMPA Hall of Fame.