Joey Logano never imagined himself behind a desk. As a kid, his world revolved around wheels and speed. “I love cars. Once you like cars, you usually like driving cars. You also probably like going really, really fast,” Logano laughs. “That was all I ever wanted to do, and it hasn’t changed to this day.”
A three -time NASCAR Cup Series Champion, Logano turned a childhood fixation into a profession before most drivers get their licenses. “There was never a thought of anything else,” he says. Racing always felt inevitable; success was a byproduct of obsession, not ambition. Even now, when the pressure mounts, he knows where to turn. “Anytime I have a few extra minutes, I jump on my quad or our go-karts. It’s my stress reliever.”
Yet transforming passion into profession creates responsibility. “I started doing this for fun, and then you get to a certain level, and it becomes a job with many people relying on you. The 500 people at Team Penske and our sponsors need me to perform.” For Logano, the stakes are personal: livelihoods tied to his execution on race day.
That accountability also shapes how he views partnerships. To Logano, sponsors are not logos on sheet metal. “It’s not just a sticker,” he says. “Fans can see when something’s not real.” Authentic alignment means understanding one’s own identity first. “First, you have to identify what your brand is. Who are you as a race car driver and as a person? Once you do that, you can put the right brands around you.”
He sees Shell Pennzoil as a model for deep collaboration. “Together we developed the oil-specific blend to give us a performance advantage on the racetrack. That’s way more than a sticker on the car,” he explains. When partnerships improve performance, not just advertising, the value becomes undeniable.
That philosophy helped spark Clutch Studios, Logano’s storytelling and production venture. What began as a modest space for sponsor shoots evolved into a full-scale commercial studio. “Anytime you can start a company and already have the customers, there’s pretty low risk,” he says. Today, Clutch produces Super Bowl commercials, live events, and content for clients across industries.
The entrepreneurial edge, Logano admits, comes with his platform. “If you’re an athlete, you have an unfair advantage in the business world. I have access to CEOs who are going to answer my call.” For him, business growth requires urgency: “I’m afraid someday I’d be in my rocking chair mad at myself saying, ‘Why didn’t I do that?’”
Still, business and competition are means, not ends. Fulfillment, Logano says, comes through the Joey Logano Foundation. Established in 2013, it offers second chances to children and young adults in crisis, with a focus on those touched by the foster care system. Programs include JL Kids Crew race-day experiences, C.A.R.E. emergency assistance, and grants to frontline organizations. To date, the foundation has distributed more than $6 million and impacted over 250,000 young people nationwide, including long-term work with many organizations that support all ages of foster care and those who help with the aging-out process, including education, housing, and therapy resources.
Logano traces the foundation’s origins to a simple question from his wife. “She asked me, ‘When you’re on your deathbed someday, do you want to be surrounded by trophies or people?’ Jokingly, I said, ‘Both sounds pretty good.’”
As a father, he tries to model that mindset at home. “What I try to do is just lead by example.” With his son already showing signs of inheriting his love of speed, Logano knows the lessons learned off the track may matter most.
“Driving race cars and creating wealth are great, but it is very empty if you choose to do nothing with it,” Logano says.
For a champion who once only measured success in speed, laps, and wins, the real race now stretches far beyond the track. It is about using his platform to build something that has a long-lasting impact. That mission may even fuel him more than any checkered flag.
