Joey Logano walked away from one of the scariest crashes of the NASCAR season. But when he returned to his motorhome at Talladega Superspeedway, he discovered that the hardest part of the afternoon wasn’t necessarily what happened on the track.
It was seeing his children in tears.
The three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion opened up about the emotional aftermath of his frightening wreck during an appearance on “SPEED with Harvick and Buxton,” revealing how the crash affected his family long after he climbed out of his overturned race car.
For Logano, the experience was a reminder that the fear surrounding a violent accident doesn’t end when a driver is cleared to walk away.
Joey Logano Says His Kids Were Crying After Talladega Crash
Logano was battling near the front of the field in the closing laps of Sunday’s YellaWood 500 when contact involving Carson Hocevar sent his No. 22 Team Penske Ford into a violent crash.
The car overturned and slid along the track on its roof, bringing a terrifying end to what had been a promising afternoon.
Logano escaped the wreck, but his family had already witnessed the frightening scene.
“I got back to the bus and my kids are crying,” Logano recalled during the podcast.
His first priority was making sure they understood that he was safe.
“I was like, ‘Dad’s OK. I’m good!'”
It’s a moment that puts the dangers of NASCAR into a different perspective.
Drivers understand the risks that come with racing at nearly 200 mph, particularly at superspeedways such as Talladega. Their families, however, are left watching those same risks unfold, often without knowing immediately whether their loved one is hurt.
For Logano’s children, seeing their father’s car upside down was understandably frightening, regardless of how quickly he was able to reassure them afterward.
Logano Finds a Bright Side to Frightening Experience
Logano also acknowledged that a serious crash affects far more people than the driver strapped into the car.
“There is that emotional task on everybody. Not just the driver in the car,” he said.
The response to the wreck also left him with something positive to take away from an otherwise difficult afternoon.
“I found out a lot of people love me so that’s kinda cool. That’s the bright side to it,” Logano added with a smile and a little laughter.
The lighthearted remark offered a glimpse of Logano’s personality, even as he reflected on a moment that had clearly shaken those closest to him.
His comments also underscored something that can get lost amid the replays, debates and post-race analysis that follow a major NASCAR accident.
For fans, a frightening crash might become one of the weekend’s most talked-about moments. For the people waiting back at the motorhome, the concern is much more personal.
Logano’s race ended with his Ford upside down. His day ended with an opportunity to hug his children and tell them he was OK.
And after everything that happened at Talladega, that mattered considerably more than where he finished.
Joey Logano Reveals Heartbreaking Reaction From His Kids After Talladega Flip