John Hunter Nemechek and Joey Logano initially had contrasting accounts of the event. The driver from Team Penske Racing, who has won the championship twice, had yet another disappointing performance on Sunday. He finished in 34th place after being forced to retire from the race due to damage caused by a wreck in stage 3. Logano was visibly angry at Nemechek, who was responsible for the race-ending collision.
Nemechek made contact with Logano from behind, causing him to crash into the wall. Thankfully, Logano’s No. 22 Penske Ford did not collide with any other cars as it went up the outside wall from the inside. Both drivers had different explanations for who was at fault for the incident. Nemechek claimed that it was Logano slowing down that led to the issue, while Logano believed he was taken out from behind.
After being cleared by the infield care center, Logano spoke to the media and accused Nemechek of unnecessarily causing the crash. He stated that Nemechek should take responsibility for his mistakes. Logano mentioned that he had to lift in the corner, but Nemechek continued to accelerate instead of doing the same.
“I didn’t slow a bit. Well, you gotta lift to make the corners, Bob. You can’t hold it wide open around Phoenix, and maybe he should realize he can’t do that either. He drove straight into the back of me, and he needs to be accountable for that,” Logano expressed.
After the race, Nemechek listened to Logano’s comments and reflected on the incident. He acknowledged that it was his own mistake and stated that he would apologize to Logano and Team Penske. Nemechek admitted that his initial belief that Logano had slowed down was incorrect.
While the conflict between the two drivers can be resolved easily, Logano has other concerns to address. He has yet to have a successful race this season, as he has been involved in multiple incidents. Logano now needs to quickly move on from this incident in order to compete for the championship.