A fair number of NASCAR’s current stars are well into their mid-to-late 30s. Among them is defending NASCAR champion Joey Logano, who just turned 35 years old. Normally, for drivers, the mid-30s is usually the time when they are just past the peak of their form and are starting to slow down. When they enter their forties, they can count how many years they can compete at the highest level.

At 35, Logano is already a 3-time champion and gunning for a 4th crown. Others around him, like Denny Hamlin, are in their 40s and still looking competitive. Few of them even race until their 50s and 60s, which honestly seems crazy. But hey, if Mark Martin and Kevin Harvick can stretch their career to the late 40s and early 50s, who knows Logano might look to extend his career like them.

But recently, Joey Logano was drawn into a bit of a debate. The subject was a bit inane because it was with regard to his name. When he was born on May 24th, 1990, he was christened Joseph Thomas Logano, but everyone knows him by the name Joey. He even recalled getting his first autograph from Mario Andretti named Joey, “It was from my grandfather, who met Mario Andretti. Mario signed his hero card and wrote, Keep chasing your dreams. And it said, To Joey.”

In conversation, some wondered whether he would go back to using the name Joseph in the future. If he ever entertained the thought, would it be after retirement and during a commentary gig? The Penske driver gave this idea a good thought and let’s just say he wasn’t keen on being Joseph.

He told Barstool Sports, “So Corey LaJoie and I had this conversation quite a few years ago. At what point – It wasn’t Joseph – at what point when do I become Joe? When do you drop the Y. You don’t like that? I kind of liked Joe. So we kind of thought. Next Gen car coming in, Next Gen Joe made sense. Corey actually came over to my race car and put a piece of duct tape over my name and put Joe. It was pretty funny at the test. I’ve gone so far, I’ve got too much brand equity in Joey at this point. How do you change your name mid-career?”

Joey Logano, whether NASCAR fans like this name or not, is now forever etched in NASCAR history. Some drivers have won the championship once or twice, but those who have won three or more, are a special and short list. Continuing Team Penske’s Next Gen domination, Logano added a third NASCAR Cup Series title to his name last year. He joined the likes of David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, and Tony Stewart, and at 35, he has still five to eight good years of competitive racing juice left in him. So we can expect this number to rise.

Well, the driver of the #22 Ford Mustang even delved deep into his winning philosophy. For Logano, every weekend he sees himself as a race contender; that’s the winner’s mentality, which fuels his drive to achieve his goals.

Joey Logano reveals the trade secret behind his successful career

For some reason, it feels like Logano has been racing for a long time and is seen as a veteran in the Cup garage. With almost 600 starts and 37 Cup wins, the Penske driver has a lot of fuel in his tank to go the extra mile. Be it in the driver’s role, a broadcaster or even something we don’t expect of him. However, going by his recent streak of success in the Next Gen era, he is destined to add more wins to his name, and he believes he can win on any given weekend. Not a racetrack or in his hometown, but every race weekend.

“If you don’t believe in yourself, who else is going to believe you. But if you don’t believe you are the best on the racetrack by the time the race starts, you’re not going to win. If your goal is fifth, the best you ever will do is fifth, right? Why not set your goal at first? If you finish fifth, that’s not the end of the world,” Logano shared on the podcast.

However, he did agree when it comes to street racing against the likes of Shane van Gisbergen, even his optimism and belief take a hit. After a wreck-fest in Atlanta, Logano will look to improve on his street racing skills and hope to have a solid day in the Windy City.