Joey Logano defends himself amid boos, 'misunderstood' conversation with Carl Edwards at Pocono

For better or worse, Joey Logano is one of the most polarizing figures in the sport of NASCAR today. Fellow drivers, other teams, and fans are split on how they feel about Logano. The three-time champion knows why that might be.

Speaking with Carl Edwards on the Prime Video pre-race show, Joey Logano related to the former NASCAR driver. Edwards had a reputation for being “two-faced” as a driver. Someone who would wreck you for position and then smile in your face afterward.

Logano maintains that Jekyll and Hyde personality. Out of the car, he might be the nicest guy you will ever meet. If you are in his rearview mirror or out the front of his windshield on the track, he’s your worst nightmare.

“I feel like we can relate a lot to that. Because I feel like when you were racing, everyone looked at Carl as fake,” Joey Logano said. “‘He’s not authentic, he’s not real,’ right? You went through the same thing. Because you were really nice off the race track, and then you were a pretty fierce competitor. You didn’t want to see Carl in your mirror, you’re like, ‘Oh, here we go.’ Like, it wasn’t an easy car to pass and not supposed to be, right? I thought we were racing.

“It makes sense to be that way, it’s just hard for people to understand that, I think, right? Not just fans to understand, I think it’s hard for competitors to understand, there can be a switch that you turn on and off. And it’s really healthy to have that because if not, if you were the type of person you were on track, off the track, you’d be a real jerk. You know what I mean? It’s not good. So, you’ve gotta find that balance, that balance is really important for me to be able to do that. Yeah, the expectation is always to go out there and win, right? Your competitors are very competitive people within this garage area, it’s what you want to do.”

So far this season, Joey Logano has one win. He has also put himself in the top-10 in points. It was a rough start to the season with the finishes slipping out of Logano’s fingers. However, since winning at Texas, things have improved for this 22 team.

While fans will likely never come around completely on Logano, he is going to keep doing what he does best. He pisses people off on the track, wins races, and wins championships. Regardless of the playoff format or whatever points system is used, to do it three times puts Logano in rare air.