Team Penske NASCAR dominance was on full display on Sunday when Ryan Blaney secured a critical victory in the NASCAR Cup playoffs, sparking new concerns among rival teams about a potential surge towards another championship. As playoff competition heats up, questions swirl over whether any team, especially Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), can disrupt Penske’s momentum in the remaining races.
Team Penske’s Recent Performance Raises the Stakes
Ryan Blaney’s win was significant not only as a single playoff result but as a continuation of Team Penske’s remarkable record in recent seasons. Joey Logano has claimed Cup championships in both 2022 and the previous season, while Blaney captured the 2023 title, giving Team Penske three consecutive championships and four of the last seven. Only Hendrick Motorsports in 2020 and 2021, and JGR in 2019, have managed to interrupt Penske’s dominance in that stretch.
This kind of performance pattern is cause for alarm for other major teams in the field. Chris Gabehart, competition director for Joe Gibbs Racing and former crew chief for Denny Hamlin, expressed concern after Sunday’s event. He suggested that without a meaningful tactical response, Penske drivers like Logano, Blaney, and Austin Cindric—if he advances to the next stage—could become an unstoppable force in the high-stakes closing rounds.
The critical final races for playoff contention—Las Vegas, Talladega, Martinsville, and the Championship 4 at Phoenix—are now looming. These tracks represent the final hurdles for teams hoping to keep pace with Team Penske’s formidable presence.
Penske’s Power Surge at Loudon
The results at Loudon underscored the point: Ford-powered entries from Team Penske and their partner, Wood Brothers Racing, captured three of the top four positions. Blaney took first, Wood Brothers’ Josh Berry surprised with a second-place finish after recent playoff elimination, and Logano finished fourth. Austin Cindric, also still in playoff contention, struggled with a seventeenth-place result, putting him 19 points below the cutline ahead of the next race.
This win saw Blaney leapfrog four spots to lead the Cup points standings, giving Penske a visible upper hand as Logano also rose to sixth in the standings, comfortably above the playoff elimination line.
Can Phoenix Replay Loudon’s Script for Team Penske?
The track layout at Phoenix, site of the championship-deciding race, closely mirrors the conditions at Loudon—a one-mile, flat track—where Penske just demonstrated dominance. Chris Gabehart identified this potential advantage, suggesting that the skills and setups that worked for Penske at Loudon might translate directly to Phoenix. He emphasized the difficulty opposing teams now face with Penske in peak form, especially given the technical similarity between the two pivotal tracks.
“The biggest thing you have to take away from today, with this aero package and the same tires at Phoenix and a one-mile raceway, the Penske cars are completely untouchable again,”
Chris Gabehart, Competition Director, Joe Gibbs Racing said.
“I know what it’s like to be untouchable. We’ve been fortunate enough to be on the right side of that, but the reality is we have a lot of work to do with this package. And that’s the focus. The rest of it is just noise. We have to get better.”
— Chris Gabehart, Competition Director, Joe Gibbs Racing
This honest reflection highlights how even teams that had strong opening performances—such as JGR, who swept all three Round of 16 wins with Chase Briscoe, Denny Hamlin, and Christopher Bell—now must reassess after delivering less impactful results at Loudon. Bell, Briscoe, and Hamlin finished sixth, tenth, and twelfth, respectively, displaying vulnerabilities not seen in the earlier round.
The importance of preparation, such as the July tire test at Loudon where Logano posted the fastest laps, may have played a decisive role in the recent weekend’s outcomes and could offer Team Penske another edge heading to Phoenix.
JGR Determined Not to Surrender the Championship
Despite the current perception of Team Penske NASCAR dominance, Chris Gabehart is not ready to concede the 2024 Cup championship just yet. He reflected on JGR’s earlier successes and noted the differences between the tracks, suggesting that past victories could provide a foundation for renewed effort. He highlighted that different venues lead to unique race-day scenarios, and success at one does not automatically ensure the same outcome at another.
“You can’t throw the baby out with the bathwater here, but the reality is it’s playoff season and here come the yellow cars with sub-par metrics along the way, but man, those guys know how to get it done when it counts. We’ll just have to race them the rest of the year and see how it goes.”
— Chris Gabehart, Competition Director, Joe Gibbs Racing
Looking forward, the next two races of the Round of 12 are crucial for JGR—and any other competitors hoping to challenge Penske. With Team Penske consistently finding another gear at this point in the season, other teams will need both strategy shifts and strong performances if they hope to prevent yet another championship from falling into Penske’s hands.
The strategic chess match between organizations like Team Penske, Joe Gibbs Racing, and past champions such as Hendrick Motorsports remains at the heart of this playoff battle. Entities including drivers like Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell, Austin Cindric, Denny Hamlin, and Chase Briscoe will continue to shape the unfolding narrative as NASCAR’s postseason heads toward its finale at Phoenix Raceway, and the true impact of Team Penske’s recent dominance will be revealed on the sport’s biggest stage.
Joe Gibbs Racing competition director Chris Gabehart on Hamlin and Gibbs plus 'here come the yellow cars.' pic.twitter.com/Kem6zJglY2
— Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverRA) September 21, 2025
