Las Vegas — Joey Logano conserved fuel and took the checkered flag at the 2024 NASCAR South Point 400 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He punched his ticket into the championship four drivers for the playoff finale in Phoenix.
While it appeared that Daniel Suarez would cruise to victory, Logano passed him with just six laps to go. This was Logano’s third win in 2024 and fourth victory overall in Sin City.
“Today, we had a solid car, “ said race winner Joey Logano. “Paul Wolfe an incredible crew chief really makes it happen. How much can I save (gas) to get to the end? I’m just blessed to be in this situation. Here we are a week later and we won this one. I’m so excited about the opportunity ahead of us. The next two weeks don’t really matter. Our focus tomorrow morning will be on Phoenix. I don’t think there’s a team that works better than Team Penske. I had to get by Suarez with enough time. Paul felt confident we were going to make it on gas. This team rises to the occasion. It’s not just me driving the car. All of these guys realize whats on the line. When the money is there, we’re able to show up.”
On lap 64, Austin Dillon and Daniel Hemric crashed in turn three. Later on lap 89, Tyler Reddick’s race car rolled over on the front stretch grass. Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney were also involved in the crash. Finally, Ty Gibbs spun out on the backstretch on lap 194.
Pole winner Christopher Bell finished in second and Toyota driver Daniel Suarez finished in third. Tyler Reddick won the first stage and Christopher Bell won the second stage.
Bell led the most laps during the race with 155 while Daniel Suarez led 57 laps. Other lap leaders included Ty Gibbs with 23 laps, Martin Truex Jr. with seven, Logano with six and Denny Hamlin led four.
The average speed during the race was 139.385 mph. The 2024 South Point 400 lasted 2 hours, 52 minutes and 24 seconds in total.
There were 13 lead changes among 10 different leaders and five caution flags. On lap 64, AUSTIN DILLON and Daniel Hemric crashed in turn three. Later on lap 89, Tyler Reddick’s race car rolled over on the front stretch grass. Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney were also involved in the crash. Finally, Ty Gibbs spun out on the backstretch on lap 194.
“A lot of ups and downs but I think it’s rolling with the flow is kind of how I operate,” said Paul Wolfe, Logano’s crew chief. “Do we feel like we’re playing with house money? We came here to do the best we could. We had a good start to the race I thought. The third stage we just lost speed. It’s something we have to figure out. We’re super excited and looking forward to Phoenix, the short track program has been our strength. How many laps can you save and still be faster than rolling down pit road and putting fuel? Our engine shop does a great job with fuel mileage. What’s the likelihood of getting a caution at the end of the race? We were getting good fuel mileage. I knew Joey could save us at the end. Keep running hard but if you can save anything do it for us. We didn’t need to save at all without losing lap time. When it comes to pressure situations, he loves that.”
Racing fans I spoke to at the South Point 400 said they had a great time and are looking forward to returning in the Spring.
“I’m really excited since Logano’s my driver,” said Sabrina Sweeney from Las Vegas. “Last week, he got into the playoffs by luck. Thank you Alex Bowman. It was a great race. Las Vegas this is home so our track is the best. We always love coming down to the Neon Garage to meet the drivers. That always makes it very exciting. We love it here.”
Walter and Tami Van Dyck from Lancaster, Calif. added: “Logano won and after the race last week, he wasn’t even in the playoffs. He got in and now he’s going to the championship. It’s awesome. I’m happy for him since my driver is not in the championship race. We had seats right on the start-finish line. Overall, it was a pretty good race. It was a great experience being able to come back here and walk around and see the race from all angles. Of course, seeing Logano here in victory lane.”
“It was kind of unpredictable like always,” said Robert Gutierrez from Los Angeles. “I’m glad Joey Logano pulled it off. He’s my favorite so it’s a good thing. I came from California to witness a good victory. There’s a lot of good vibe here. It’s great. I did a little tailgating, had some food before walking in. It was just a great atmosphere.”
Once again, Joey Logano won the 2024 South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Next up, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Straight Talk Wireless 400 on Sunday.
Stay with AmericaJR for more coverage from the South Point 400…
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