Former NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick recently discussed Team Penske’s early-season struggles on his podcast, Happy Hour. Harvick believes that bad luck, rather than poor performance, has been the primary reason behind the team’s initial difficulties in the 2025 season. Despite showing strong speed, Team Penske drivers Austin Cindric, Ryan Blaney, and Joey Logano struggled to convert their fast cars into strong results early on.
For instance, at the Daytona 500, Team Penske led 125 of 201 laps but failed to secure a top-five finish. Similarly, at Atlanta, the team led 131 of 266 laps, with only Blaney managing to crack the top 10. However, the team has started to turn their pace into wins, with Cindric and Logano securing victories at Talladega and Texas respectively, marking their first back-to-back wins of the season.
Harvick emphasized that the team’s early-season struggles were not a reflection of their performance but rather a string of mistimed events and bad luck. He pointed out that all three drivers have shown confidence in the speed of their cars, with Logano and Blaney expressing frustration at not converting their potential into wins. As the regular season progresses, Blaney and Logano have climbed into the top 10 of the championship standings, with Cindric close behind in 14th place.
In a post-race interview with Kevin Harvick after his win at Texas Motor Speedway, Logano shed light on how Team Penske addresses challenges. He highlighted the team’s process-driven approach, where they methodically analyze issues, learn from them, and implement strategies to prevent recurrence. Logano emphasized the team’s disciplined and engineering-focused mindset as a key strength that helps them navigate tough situations.
Currently ninth in the NASCAR Cup Series drivers’ standings, Logano trails the leader, William Byron, by 133 points. Despite their early-season struggles, Team Penske’s recent resurgence and methodical approach to problem-solving have shown promising signs for the remainder of the season. With strong performances and a focused mindset, the team aims to build on their recent successes and continue their upward trajectory in the championship standings.
