Livid Dale Jr. Shreds Joey Logano’s ‘Scared Drivers’ Championship Claims to Pieces

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Joey Logano go way back. Last month in Chicago, Junior didn’t hold back, calling the 35-year-old a jerk during the Ross Chastain feud. But this time around, it is the NASCAR playoff system that is in contention. Logano’s 2024 championship exists because of it, so why would he want to change the system that crowned him? So here he is, staunchly defending the format, while NASCAR legend and Hall of Famer Dale Jr. makes it clear that he is not fully buying what the Team Penske star is selling.

On August 29, Logano delivered a blunt message: “As a fan, I want to see (drivers) scared, and our playoff system now does that. I’ve always been the person to say, ‘If you’re complaining about it, then just do better… If you scored a bunch of points… and you didn’t make the Championship 4, shame on you. You had a head start, and you still couldn’t do it. Don’t say it’s not legit. You could’ve gone out there and won to get it. You didn’t.” He went further, admitting the format pissed him off, but he is ready to face it. He then added, “Change it? Fine. We’ll go win it again.” Logano’s third title wasn’t built on regular-season dominance; it was forged in the high-stakes crucible of playoff pressure. He entered the postseason ranking 15th, with just one win in the first 26 races. But when it mattered, he struck: clutch performances, won rounds, and unseized the championship when everyone else flickered. It is exactly the kind of finish the current format rewards, and Logano thrives under that kind of pressure.

But Dale Earnhardt Jr. has his very own diplomatic view without hurting the No. 22 driver’s sentiments. On today’s episode of his Dale Junior Download podcast, he said, “So the only thing, like I think first thing I want to say is this. You can believe that Joey Logano is a legitimate champion and still believe that the playoffs should be different. So, I think that Joey is a legitimate champion. I think that Joey’s trophies that he has in his possession are as cool and as real, and as historic as any other champion in our series ever. All through the history of NASCAR, every championship has been won under a different set of circumstances.” 

But this debate didn’t start with Joey Logano. Matt Kenseth in 2003 clinched the NASCAR championship with just one race win all season, despite consistent top 10 finishes and leading the points for 33 races. Title victory, seen as underwhelming after dominating figures like Ryan Newman, who had eight wins that year but finished sixth, prompted a radical shift in NASCAR’s approach to crowning its champion. The following year, the playoff system, originally dubbed The Chase for the NEXTEL Cup, was introduced to put greater emphasis on wins and create more excitement in the championship battle. Although NASCAR later clarified that the changes aimed to promote winning rather than directly penalize Matt, his 2003 championship is widely credited—or blamed—as the spark behind the playoff system that was introduced. And Logano followed suit. He secured his playoff spot with a win at Texas Motor Speedway, his only win so far in 2025.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. points out that NASCAR today is nothing like its break-off past. He says, “Right now we have, oh, it’s tough. You know, it’s way more competitive. My point being that not just the playoffs and how you score points has changed. The sports evolved. Every championship is unique. So are Joey’s. But I don’t think that the single-race format is the best way to decide the champion. It doesn’t mean that Joey doesn’t deserve to be celebrated. And it doesn’t mean that if they were to change it, it doesn’t really dilute or take away from what he accomplished. What’s done is done.”

Yet, despite the drama of the current format, he questions whether a single race finale is the ideal decider. That doesn’t diminish what Logano achieved, but Junior suggests that widening the final sample size might better reflect season-long merit without sacrificing excitement. And now, as Joey Logano fires away about the NASCAR community’s championship callout, he sees himself struggling after the first round of 16.

Joey Logano voices frustration after the Darlington run amid playoff pressure

It is an incredibly disheartening start to Joey Logano’s quest for what he hopes will be a fourth NASCAR championship, a shaky opening performance that now threatens to derail his playoff hopes with an early elimination hanging ominously over his campaign. Heading into the weekend, Logano had every reason to feel confident.

The Team Penske driver’s record at Darlington was stellar; one victory and nine top 10 finishes since 2015 painted a picture of consistency and strength. So, to come away with such a lackluster result has left his team stunned and searching for answers. He admitted candidly after the race, “We just didn’t go fast. Just couldn’t get a handle on the car. Either the front was plowing or the rear was loose, and sometimes I had both happening at the same time.”

Joey Logano qualified 14th on Saturday, and things would get no better in the race after he brought his No. 22 car home in 20th position. Logano continued, “It’s not what we were expecting. This has been a good track for us over the last 10 years. We just missed it. It was surprising. I thought we’d be able to run in the top 10 just off of history, but everyone got better, and we didn’t.”

Now, Logano turns his focus to Gateway, where he arrives sitting 13th in the playoff standings, three points shy of the critical cut line. If he has to keep his championship dream alive in advance of the round of 12, he will need to summon every ounce of that well-earned playoff pedigree.