Sports · Motorsport · 5 hrs ago
Penske Drivers Stay in Cup Title Hunt as Ford Prepares 2027 Body
Team Penske drivers Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano remain in contention for a NASCAR Cup title ahead of the Phoenix race.
Blaney is fifth in the standings, 85 points behind, while Logano is 92 points back.
Austin Cindric is eighth after back-to-back top-five finishes at Kansas and Las Vegas.
The team struggled on these tracks earlier in the season, but its results improved in a recent three-race stretch.
Blaney said the team has gained ground but still needs to catch up to rivals’ speed at the start of runs.
Ford will introduce a new car body in 2027, which will require drivers to adjust.
Logano said the recent improvement came mainly from setup changes, not the body.
Ford and Penske will learn more about how the new design performs once it races on track.
Team Penske drivers Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano remain mathematically in contention for the Cup title after improving at three tracks.
Blaney is fifth in the standings, 85 points behind, while Logano is 92 points back.
Austin Cindric is eighth in the Chase standings ahead of Phoenix.
The drivers said improvements came from work on car setups, while Ford is preparing a new body for 2027.
Logano said the new body will bring a learning curve, but the improvements Penske has made are not dependent on the body.
- Who
- Team Penske drivers Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano and Austin Cindric.
- What
- Blaney and Logano remain in the Cup title hunt after improved results at Kansas, Las Vegas and Charlotte. Ford is preparing a new body for 2027.
- When
- The story was published on October 12, 2026. The new Ford body is planned for 2027.
- Where
- Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, and the Kansas, Las Vegas and Charlotte tracks.
- Why
- Recent results improved Penske’s position in the title hunt. The article attributes gains mainly to setup work.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Blaney finished 24th at Kansas, 16th at Las Vegas and seventh at Charlotte.
Blaney finished fifth, fifth and third, while Logano’s ninth-place Charlotte finish gave him back-to-back top 10s.
Cindric sits eighth in the Chase standings.
Ford is preparing a new body for its Cup cars.
- Ryan Blaney
- Fifth in the standings, 85 points behind
- Joey Logano
- 92 points behind
- Austin Cindric
- Eighth in the Chase standings ahead of Phoenix
- Blaney’s recent finishes
- Fifth at Kansas, fifth at Las Vegas and third at Charlotte
- Ford body
- New body planned for 2027
What people are saying
And these three tracks were super important, and I think our whole building has done a really good job of getting better.
A lot of it is the setup and finding something finally that kind of seems to fit what I want, what I need in the car.
We’re still about half a step behind.
Yes, there's going to be somewhat of a learning curve with a new body, but the things that we have found and the things we like and what I need in the car isn't really body-dependent.
Sources
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