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Joey Logano Discusses Retirement, Kyle Petty Blasts SVG Praise, and More

Welcome to Hoot in the Oval — your all-access pass to everything NASCAR. From Denny’s clutch finishes to Ross’s wild moves, Chase Elliott fandom to Bubba’s bold takes — we’ve got the stories that fuel the track and the timeline. Fast, loud, unfiltered. Buckle up, y’all. 🏁

The latest edition of our newsletter covers :

  • Logano discusses retirement ahead of career milestone

  • Busch talks about the possibility of racing the Indy 500

  • All of the records SVG broke in Sonoma

  • Kyle Petty’s rant on SVG being called the greatest road course racer

🏁Inside the Oval

Joey Logano Gets Candid About NASCAR Retirement Ahead of Cup Career Milestone

It seems like yesterday when Joey Logano made his first NASCAR Cup start with Joe Gibbs Racing.

The date was September 14, 2008, and the fresh-faced 18-year-old kid from Connecticut, the so-called “sliced bread” (as in the greatest thing since sliced bread), was about to embark upon an incredible career. 

He didn’t know at the time how incredible his career would become.

Today, nearly 17 years later, Logano still looks like he’s 18, like he probably has to show his ID each time he goes into a bar for a beer. 

But alas, Logano has hit the “elderly” age of 35. More importantly, from that 32nd-place finish in his Cup debut at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, he has gone on to win three Cup championships (including two in the last three years), 37 Cup wins, and is preparing to make his 600th career Cup start this Sunday at Dover Motor Speedway. The driver of Team Penske’s No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse will join an exclusive club, becoming only the 34th driver in Cup history to make 600 starts.

So, how many more races can the future NASCAR Hall of Famer likely still compete in? Is he ready to retire now, or does he have a lot of miles still left in his tank? “I always say as long as I can win; I really feel like that’s the standard for me,” Logano said. “I love racing, but I really love winning a lot more. If I can go race other things and win, I’ll go and do that, but my dream has always been to be a NASCAR driver, be a NASCAR champion, and if I can win and be a help to my team, then I want to stick around.” 

But Logano is also realistic and knows that his career will eventually come to an end.

“As soon as I feel like I’m a drag on the team and I’m not bringing anything to the table anymore, whether that’s on the racetrack or off the racetrack, that’s when I need to get out of the way at that point,” he acknowledged. “I want to see Roger Penske and his race team and the people that are there be successful. I care about them a lot, so I want to be a way to contribute to that. That’s what I want out of myself. 

“I don’t want to stick around and be one of those guys where people say, ‘Man, he went a few years too long.’ You don’t want to be that guy. I think whenever [retirement] happens, that happens. I don’t know when that is. I would be an idiot to think you can be competing at the top level into your fifties,” added Logano.

“What athlete has ever done that? Something changes at some point, but right now, I still feel as fresh as ever. I feel as sharp as ever. I’m driven as much as ever…. When the end is, I don’t know yet. I don’t know.”

🏁Insider Take

Kyle Busch Does Not Rule Out Potential Indy 500 Run Despite Clear Challenges

Kyle Busch has spent his life facing and conquering challenges. Now, even as a 40-year-old, an age when most NASCAR Cup drivers start thinking about retirement, the Las Vegas native still has a few more challenges on his to-do list.

One of the top challenges for the two-time NASCAR Cup champion is to emulate older brother Kurt and compete in the Indianapolis 500, either as part of 'The Double' – racing in both the 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 on the same day – or just exclusively in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

Busch had an opportunity to do The Double in 2017. Everything was in place until team owner Joe Gibbs nixed it, citing an apparent conflict in Busch’s contract with JGR.

“I’ve certainly had some opportunities, been very, very close in the past, back in 2017 and then again the last couple of years before [Kyle] Larson got the go,” Busch said recently on a Rowdy Nation Takeover on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “We had a deal on the table, ready to happen, but weren’t able to get it all the way through.”

“I’ve seen the issues Larson has had the last couple of years with the weather. That definitely does not seem like fun. Seems like a lot of anxiety for not a lot of payoff,” added Busch.

Busch’s current team owner is Richard Childress. He has driven with the team for the past three seasons and has signed for a one-year extension through 2026. Childress is all in favor of his senior driver doing The Double, much like how Rick Hendrick allowed Kyle Larson to do it the last two years.

“Anything’s possible, I certainly wouldn’t throw it out,” Busch said. “Whether I do it post my Cup Series career, just to go do it, just to go run it, I wouldn’t say you’re the youngest dog out there and being able to go do it at 45 years or so. 

“Don’t rule it out, but as of right now, nothing in the plans to go do that. But that is right at the top of the bucket list of one I’d really enjoy to go do.”

🏁 Trackside Trivia
(One stat. One year. Every edition.)

1973: Bristol’s Two‑Week Rain Suspension

In 1973, the Southeastern 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on March 11 was suspended due to rain after just 52 laps. The race didn’t resume until March 25, making it the longest weather-related interruption in NASCAR Cup Series history.

When the race finally restarted, Cale Yarborough picked up exactly where he left off, leading the remaining 448 laps to complete the 500-lap distance and win.

That kind of epic weather delay and seamless on-track continuation could never happen today with modern scheduling, broadcast contracts, and packed calendars.

🗣️ Pit Politics

All the records Shane van Gisbergen shattered at Sonoma 

Shane van Gisbergen continues to redefine what’s possible for a NASCAR rookie, and his latest triumph at Sonoma Raceway shattered multiple long-standing records in one afternoon.

It was SVG's fourth career NASCAR Cup Series win in just his 34th start. He became the fastest driver in the modern era to reach four Cup wins. Parnelli Jones, who won his fourth race in 1967 in 31 starts, is the only driver to do it quicker than SVG.

In comparison, legends like Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards took 47 races to reach the same milestone, and they were part of top-tier teams like Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush Racing. Gisbergen’s feat is all the more remarkable considering Trackhouse Racing is not yet considered a Cup powerhouse.

The Sonoma win also marked his third consecutive road course victory from pole, following similar wire-to-wire dominance in Mexico City and Chicago. Only Jeff Gordon has previously accomplished that, doing so between 1998 and 1999 as part of a six-race road course win streak that extended into 2000.

Even more historic: SVG, with three wins, is now tied with Tony Stewart (1999) and Jimmie Johnson (2002) for the most Cup Series wins by a rookie in a single season. With two more road courses still on the 2024 calendar, at Watkins Glen and the Charlotte Roval, he’s poised to make that record his own.

🎙️ Hoot’s Radio Chatter

Kyle Petty Irked By Shane van Gisbergen Being Regarded As the Greatest Road Racer in NASCAR History

Shane van Gisbergen’s rise through the NASCAR Cup Series ranks has been meteoric, with three road course wins from three poles in just his first full season. But not everyone is ready to crown the Kiwi as the sport’s greatest road racer. And Kyle Petty has voiced strong opinions following SVG’s latest win at Sonoma.

“There was a comment made yesterday that just irked me. Is SVG the greatest road racer of all time? Give me a break, people. Give me a break,” Petty said.

However, he didn’t dismiss SVG’s accomplishments. But Petty was firm about dousing the recent hype with some perspective.

“He’s sat on three poles and he’s won three races. Yes, he did something Jeff Gordon did. Yes, he did something in a short period of time, something Parnelli Jones did back in 1964. But the greatest of all time? Are we eliminating Tony Stewart? Are we eliminating Jeff Gordon? Or are we eliminating Richard Petty and Rusty Wallace and Ricky Rudd, and all of those guys? No, he’s not the greatest of all time,” said Petty.

Petty pointed to a larger trend in NASCAR discourse, which was the general media’s overreaction. He noted how earlier in the season, Christopher Bell won three races and was quickly declared a title favorite. The same happened with Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin after their respective win streaks.

“It’s the greatest of the moment,” Petty clarified. “He is the greatest of the moment on road racing. We can’t say anything else.”

While van Gisbergen’s road course success is undeniable, Petty made it clear that crowning him the greatest ignores decades of elite talent. So, labeling SVG the greatest is not just premature, it is also disrespectful to those who built that reputation over time.

🏁 Lap Back in Time: NASCAR Stat of the Year
(One stat. One year. Every edition.)

1972: Bobby Allison’s Untouchable Laps-Led Streak

In 1972, Bobby Allison pulled off one of the most unbreakable feats in NASCAR Cup Series history — leading at least one lap in 39 consecutive races.

The streak, which began in September 1971 and extended till October 1972, remains the longest of its kind to this day. Allison led a staggering 4,343 laps in 1972 — over 41% of all laps run across the season’s 31 races.

Despite his dominance, Allison didn’t win the championship.