Getty Joey Logano (front) and Matt Kenseth (rear) joked about their relationship at Fontana.
Two NASCAR Cup Series champions had a unique reunion on February 27 during the Wise Power 400 at Auto Club Speedway. Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth “buried the hatchet” during a stage break.
The moment took place as the drivers prepared for the start of the final stage. Kenseth called up his former rival on the radio and asked him about the remainder of the race. Though the 2003 Cup Series champion first had some fun joking about his relationship with Logano.
“Hey, @joeylogano! This is a voice you probably never thought you’d hear on the radio. This is @mattkenseth.”
(@ClintBowyer grinning the whole time is just too great 😂)
“Hey, Joey Logano, this is a voice that you probably never thought you’d hear over the radio. This is Matt Kenseth up in the FOX Sports booth. How’s it going?” Meanwhile, Mike Joy and Clint Bowyer stood nearby, grinning from ear to ear.
Logano embraced the moment and called Kenseth “friend,” which only sparked laughter from the trio in the booth. This moment entertained viewers at home and marked a significant change from the past interactions between the two champions.
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Logano & Kenseth Sparked Multiple Crashes in 2015
“KENSETH TAKES HIM OUT!”
Matt Kenseth was still fuming from a wreck two weeks earlier, and took matters into his own hands and intentionally wrecked Joey Logano at Martinsville in 2015.
Logano would miss the #Championship4, and NASCAR suspended Kenseth for two races.
The on-track incidents between Logano and Kenseth began in October 2015. The driver of the No. 22 moved Kenseth out of the way during a playoff race at Kansas Speedway, dropping him to a 14th-place finish and sparking anger from the driver of the No. 20. Two weeks later, Kenseth sent Logano into the wall at Martinsville, knocking him out of contention for the championship four.
NASCAR responded to the incident at Martinsville by parking Kenseth. The sanctioning body also suspended him for two races. He missed the trips to Texas Motor Speedway and Phoenix Raceway, as well as the championship four, but returned for the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
The issues continued into the 2016 season, coming to a head at Talladega Superspeedway on May 1. Logano ran Kenseth below the double-yellow line, knocking him further back into the pack. Following a wreck that collected both drivers and multiple others, Kenseth confronted Logano outside of the infield care center. The veteran driver later told Motorsport.com that he thought the feud was over but “maybe we aren’t.”
The Feud Ultimately Came to an End
While Kenseth and Logano appeared to be bitter enemies in 2015 and 2016, their feud did ultimately come to an end. They continued to face off full-time until the end of the 2017 season when Kenseth walked away from the Cup Series.
The two champions also competed with each other on a part-time basis in 2018 and 2020 when Kenseth replaced both Trevor Bayne and Kyle Larson. These seasons did not feature intentional wrecks or confrontations outside of the infield care center. However, they showcased a different Logano, one that learned an important lesson from his battle with Kenseth.
“In all honesty, what would I have done differently, I would have picked up the phone and maybe we would have disagreed and nothing would have changed, but at least it’s a call,” Logano said in 2016, per SportingNews. “I didn’t know what I was going to say and I didn’t think it was anything he wanted to hear. If I were to change one thing, that would be it.”
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