Here's what everyone will be talking about as the NASCAR haulers roll into Daytona International Speedway next month for the start of one the most unpredictable seasons in recent memory.Even if you've already been anointed the next coming off Jeff Gordon, it's a tough year to be a rookie. And 18-year-old racing American Idol Joey Logano is about to find that out.
If anyone will be affected by the testing restrictions, it's the rookie class, led by the Joe Gibbs Racing prodigy Logano. He'll be learning the tracks and a new car by the seat of his pants unless NASCAR makes some extra provisions such as a short rookie-only practice each weekend.
It's hard to feel sorry for a teenager earning a six-figure paycheck competing in the most elite levels of racing, but surely Logano shouldn't be compared to recent Rookies of the Year who had exponentially more seat time in the Cup cars than Logano will have.
The comparison to Gordon is actually more accurate because Gordon endured a learning curve his first season too. And frankly, less was expected of him than Logano.
"It's part of the mystery as we move forward to see how this all works out,'' Toyota Racing Development President Lee White said of the young Toyota driver.
"I do think that one of the negatives of the test ban is the fact that it's probably going to take some additional time to develop a rookie.
"That means you're going to have to have a very strong team and a very patient sponsor to be able to ride that and to get him where he needs to be.''
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-22-2009 @ 5:18PM
Bob said...
I for one am very interested to see how Logano does. I know it may be too soon to expect big things with his jump to the big leagues, but that was also the perception when he debuted in the Nationwide series, and he flowed right in like he had been there for years. The guy has an outrageous amount of talent and, even more importantly, poise. It's certainly wise to temper the expectations just yet, but I'm betting he's going to be a contender very early in his career.
Reply
1-22-2009 @ 6:56PM
hafttwo said...
joey is probably a good guy but i will never cheer for a driver in a foreign car ,
Reply
1-22-2009 @ 10:08PM
CJ said...
Joey will probably get rookie of the year, as all JGR drivers Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, and former driver Tony Stewart all won Rookie of the Year, but the rookie crop the past couple of seasons has been sorry. Last year with it coming down to Hornish Jr and Regan Smith and even though Smith won it, he still was only able to get a part time ride this season as Hornish Jr still has his full time ride. There hasnt been a good field of rookies since the 2006 season when you had Denny Hamlin, Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr. 2007 came down to David Ragan and Juan Pablo Montoya, and in 2005, Kyle Busch's only competition for Rookie that year was Travis Kvapil in a Penske car, and that wasnt even close. Logano's only competition this year, in my opinion, will be Scott Speed and ill admit, Scott could put up one hell of a fight for that honor from what ive seen of his success in the Truck series. The past few years, it's usually came down to two drivers competiting for the Rookie honor, as in 2001 in which Harvick beat Kurt Busch, 2002 when suprisingly Ryan Newman beat Jimmie Johnson, and in 2003 when Jamie McMurray got it over Greg Biffle, and in 2004 Kasey Kahne won it hands down with little competition although going into that year i thought that Vickers in the 25 Hendrick car would've given him some stiff competition but he wasnt even a threat as Kahne finished in second place four times that year.
Reply
1-23-2009 @ 11:04AM
tomatoman said...
WHAT'S WITH THIS "JOEY" CRAP ? COME ON, THE GUY ISN'T A 4 YEAR OLD. HOW ABOUT JOE.
Reply
1-23-2009 @ 1:36PM
Bob said...
To address tomatoman: sometimes that's just the way the person himself likes it. Back when I used to follow hardcore Grand Prix motorcycles, the top riders were Eddie, Freddie, and Kenny. I don't honestly know if "Joey" prefers that, but many do--I just know the guy's a heckuva good driver.
Reply
1-23-2009 @ 11:14PM
mbsenlick said...
Joey Logano is not ready for Sprint Cup. He should stay in Nationwide Series for a couple of more years. Like everyone else does. Just look at his finishes in the Cup Series for the ones that he qualified for. He did not even finish a race. So how is he ready for the big series? I am excited to see Mark Martin return to full time Cup racing. Maybe he can finally get his championship that he so deserves driving for the best team.
Reply
1-24-2009 @ 10:14PM
luwuff said...
I also like Mark Martin but he won't come any
closer to that Championship with Hendrick than he
Did with Roush. He is the fourth man on the totem pole now,
Reply