February 11, 2026, Daytona Beach, Fl, USA: JOEY LOGANO 22 of Middletown, CT gets gets ready to practice for Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach , FL. Daytona Beach USA - ZUMAa161 20260211_aaa_a161_006 Copyright: xWalterxG.xArcexSr.x

May 6, 2026, 1:49 PM CUT

Joey Logano’s Form Dip Tied to Wider Team Penske Issues

Joey Logano has certainly not been at his best in the 2026 NASCAR season. The Team Penske driver has an average finish of 21 in 11 races so far. However, as per a leading NASCAR expert, Jordan Bianchi, the issue is not with Logano but with Team Penske.

“I believe in Joey Logano," Bianchi said. "I’m not saying it’s a Logano problem necessarily. Logano’s fine. If you put him in a Gibbs car, he’s going to be up front and doing things. It’s more of a Penske issue as a whole.”

Notably, the comparison by Bianchi comes straight away after how Team Penske and Joe Gibbs Racing have performed so far in 2026. Apart from Ryan Blaney, neither of the two Team Penske drivers, Logano and Austin Cindric, have been able to find a worthy performance.

Logano is in 17th place in the Drivers' Standings with third at Martinsville and Daytona as his best results, while Cindric is in 15th place with fifth as his best finish at Darlington Raceway.

On the other hand, two of the four JGR drivers, Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs, won races, ranking second and seventh respectively in the standings. The other two drivers, Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe, haven't won but have shown some consistent performances.

In fact, Bell, who had an unfortunate ending at Texas despite leading the early 22 laps, spoke about wanting more from his performance.

Christopher Bell is hopeful of a turnaround

Following the conclusion of the Texas Motor Speedway Cup Series race, Christopher Bell shared his thoughts and hoped for the time to get better. Speaking to the media, he said:

"It’s a bummer, but I’m thankful. I’m thankful I get to drive really fast race cars, thankful I got to lead laps today, thankful I get to carry the Rheem colors, and drive for Joe Gibbs Racing. I was a couple of feet. A couple of feet away from having a great day. It’s going to turn around at some point.”

Bell's last few races have seen him finish outside the top-10, something he was consistently doing before that.

In 11 races, Bell claimed three top fives and four top 10s, along with a pole. Despite leading 325 laps, the JGR star is waiting to win his first of the season.

Written by

Sabyasachi Biswas

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason