Insiders Warn Cup Garage Against Counting Out Team Penske Ahead of High-Stakes Las Vegas Clash

Team Penske had cracked the code on winning championships in the playoffs era. From 2022 to 2024, the pair of Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney won the Bill France Cup for Penske. But now that the traditional 10-race Chase is back, they are no longer seen as the favorites. Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, and Christopher Bell are seen as legitimate title challenges. Yet, a group of NASCAR insiders are backing Penske boys for this weekend’s race at Las Vegas. 

Brad Gillie from PRN made his bold pick, “In an era when Team Penske won championships on short tracks, they also won Las Vegas Motor Speedway there at the time that would put them in the championship 4. They are pretty good at this track as well.” And truth be told, Penske knows how to get it done at Vegas. 

Joey Logano in particular has been on top of his game at the 1.5-mile track. His 2022 championship-winning campaign gained momentum at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He won the Southpoint 400, becoming the first driver to clinch the spot in the final four at Phoenix. The script repeated in 2024; he wasn’t even in the conversation as a title contender. 

A lucky break at Charlotte Roval, thanks to Alex Bowman’s disqualification, kept him in the race. The very next week, a trip to Sin City saw him clinch the checkered flag again. He only led the final six laps of the race and spoiled Christopher Bell’s chance to reach the finale in Phoenix. The No. 22 Ford Mustang isn’t necessarily the most dominant car at Vegas, but they know how to win races on execution. 

Chris Rice also chipped in with his verdict, “Joey Logano’s really good there. He usually wins the Pennzoil race but I could see him taking the Southpoint 400. Penske definitely will be a player; I just don’t know which one.” However, it was Alexis Erickson who made the dark horse prediction of a non-Chase driver pulling off a big upset. 

“Also, think about the Penske-affiliated car of Josh Berry in the 21. He is been in my opinion, one of the best non-Chase cars over last four plus weeks. And he’s won at Vegas.” It is hard to argue against the unanimous decision of the PRN panel, and Josh Berry is a legitimate contender. 

Berry won the 2025 spring race at Vegas in the iconic No. 21 car, and once again he will have an opportunity to repeat the heroics this weekend. He has finished with a top-10 finish in the last seven of the nine starts, and if there’s a non-Chase driver who can pull off a big upset, it is Berry. So while the hype is around Hamlin and the Toyota’s intermediate strength, Penske’s strength at this track cannot be ignored. 

If anything, this race at Las Vegas could be a deciding factor that makes or breaks the Penske driver’s hopes to remain in the title race. After the Kansas race, Kyle Larson has opened up a 26-point lead over Hamlin. Christopher Bell in third has to cut down that points deficit by 50 points. Well, for Logano and Blaney, they need to move in quickly before they are out of the picture. 

A 20th-place finish by Logano saw him drop down to 4th in the points standings, and he is 67 points behind the leader, Larson. Meanwhile, Ryan Blaney has to overcome a 91-point deficit. Another top 5 finish or a 50-plus points day from the driver of the No. 5 car could remove the Penske drivers from‌ title contention. 

Denny Bros and the HMS fans will be hoping for a normal Vegas race. But given the history and the uncertainty of the Chase, the Penske Fords are well equipped to keep the title race entertaining, and we might see another twist at Las Vegas.

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