Joey Logano and Team Penske’s L1 penalty after his win at Richmond International Raceway on Sunday seems like a pretty big deal, as it makes reaching NASCAR’s playoffs more difficult.
Logano, though, is shrugging the violation off like a case of the fleas.
“It wasn’t a big deal, but the rule was written in black-and-white and we pushed it a little too far,” Logano told FOX Sports on Friday. “We’ll pay the penalty and move on.”
Following the Toyota Owners 400, a violation was found in the No. 22’s rear suspension. While the win wasn’t vacated, the points Logano earned from the victory won’t count toward an automatic playoff spot in the fall.
Clearly, NASCAR is taking the team’s infraction rather seriously, but the same can’t be said for the 26-year-old Logano, who says he views the “encumbered” victory as no different than his other 17 wins in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.
“I personally do because what happened was very, very small,” he told Fox Sports at Talladega Superspeedway. “What we got in trouble for was something that really didn’t make our car any faster. It wasn’t enough to make it much faster.
“Personally, I still look at it as a win. But obviously from the outside, we’ve lost all the benefits of the win.”
Rules are rules, Joey.
Thumbnail photo via Marvin Gentry/USA TODAY Sports Images
