Jimmie Johnson is known as the “King of Chase.” It doesn’t matter how difficult the situation was; the No. 48 team knew how to win titles. And it looks like Hendrick Motorsports has found a similar team in the No. 5 of Kyle Larson and Cliff Daniels. Before the Chase, people were calling out Larson’s winless run, but after the first five weeks, the whole title race has turned on its head. Joey Logano, who raced against both Johnson and Larson, couldn’t help but draw parallels between the two drivers. But his praise came with a warning as well.

“What they did last week is a total Jimmie Johnson type thing, you know where start the race not that great. Make a big change all of a sudden he’s up there contending for the win… They are tough competitors, there’s no doubt, but we can take em, we can get em. No one’s superhuman, right? Everyone has weaknesses and upto us to expose those,” Logano said in an interview shared on X by Steve Taranto.

Kyle Larson didn’t have the best of starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. His No. 5 car was off, and he had to pit to undergo major adjustments on Lap 35. It wasn’t a normal pit stop; Larson was sitting in his box for 26 seconds. But thanks to these adjustments, he found his balance and speed on the racetrack.

Even his direct rival seemed to work in his favor. After Zane Smith spun on the track, Denny Hamlin was called to pit road. The No. 11 team forgot that Larson was a lap down, and their decision to pit allowed him to get back on the lead lap. From here on, it was a hard grind back to the front of the field. He gave it his all on the final laps, even crashing into the wall in hopes of catching Chase Briscoe. But he had to settle for P2. Very few teams have shown the ability to suffer a setback and still finish strong to extend their advantage.

It seems like the No. 5 HMS team is error-free, and even when they have their backs against the wall, they manage to fight back. Two victories, two runner-up finishes, and a P5 at Darlington. He has a 40-point buffer over a driver who’s struggling to find his early-season form in the Chase, and this title race could be settled before Homestead-Miami. But Logano and Team Penske aren’t out of the picture just yet.

Logano and the No. 22 team are on a decent run so far in the Chase: a win at Bristol, top-10s at Darlington and Las Vegas, and a top-five at Gateway. The 20th-place finish is the outlier so far in five races. And it’s worth noting that the No. 22 team climbed from 20th to start the Chase as the ninth seed. After Las Vegas, he’s fourth, 71 points from the leader, Larson. We’ve seen in the Chase itself that scoring 70-plus points in a single race is a reality.

Larson bagged the maximum 76 points during his dominant win at Kansas. So, the 71-point deficit might seem like a big number, but given the swings this points system and format have delivered, Logano and his team are well within range to score a massive win along with the points. The Charlotte oval race is going to be a surprise for everyone, and Talladega, as always, is an unpredictable race.

Phoenix is a track where Logano has been exceptional, especially in the postseason. Two wins and a fourth-place finish in three of his last four starts at the flat oval are not something even his rivals can ignore. And this might be the track that sets Logano on his title charge, like he has done in previous seasons.

If Hamlin and Christopher Bell keep missing their chances to stake their claims, Logano is ready to pounce on the opportunity that will get him back in the race. And looking at the tracks up ahead, the Penske driver has the right to be optimistic, as there is still a lot of racing left to decide the 2026 championship.