Zane Smith, driving the No. 38 Ford for Front Row Motorsports, rallied late in the race to win Friday night’s Truck Series finale and his first series championship. Smith, 23, was the only Ford driver eligible to win the season title, having to face off against three Toyota drivers.
In a dominating performance, Joey Logano, driving the No. 22 Ford for Team Penske, won Sunday’s Cup series finale and earned his second career title (the other coming in 2018).
Like Smith, Logano was the only Ford driver eligible for the title, but he faced off against one Toyota driver and a pair from Chevrolet.
“The Truck race on Friday and the championship and Zane Smith and what Front Row Motorsports has done in starting that program and Zane being as strong as he was and, again, a dominant race that he had, as well, so he’s got a really strong future in the sport,” said Mark Rushbrook, global director for Ford Performance motorsports.
“That means so much to us because the Truck Series is important to us. It’s a great place for talent, for us to develop all elements of the team, and especially in the drivers. So, that was an important day for us.
“And then to cap it off with the Cup Series and Joey and the championship, it’s been a great weekend.”
Smith will return for another fulltime season in Trucks next season with Front Row but will also run several Cup Series races for the organization, including the 2023 Daytona 500.
Logano’s title made his the first Ford driver since David Pearson won back-to-back titles in 1968 and 1969 to win multiple championships. Both have come at Penske, which joined Ford in NASCAR beginning with the 2013 season.
“Having Team Penske as part of Ford, as a partner for Ford, they are such a strong team, such a great partner, and you saw the strength across their cars (in the race) and throughout most of the season,” Rushbrook said.
“Joey, I don’t remember how many times he’s been in the Championship 4, but it seems like almost every year that he’s been, and he delivers. He’s a racer. He pays attention to every single detail, and especially getting locked in early like he did.
“That’s all he’s been focused on for the last three weeks, and (crew chief) Paul Wolfe and the team and everybody. He’s just so committed and so strong and executed every lap.”
Ford had its share of struggles throughout the 2022 season in getting adapted to the next Next Gen car, including a problem tire rubber building up at times and igniting the rocker box in front of their Mustangs.
Brad Keselowski’s No. 6 Ford experienced the problem again late in Sunday’s race, which brought an early end to his day.
“I think there’s a lot in the sport we still need to figure out. NASCAR made a lot of changes partway through the season, which certainly seemed to help, but there’s just so much variability from track to track,” Rushbrook said.
“A lot of it is due to the rubber buildup, and Brad (Keselowski) last week at Martinsville, there was almost no rubber buildup in his car. Obviously, this week there was a lot. We need to take a close look at that through the off-season as a sport, as a manufacturer, and see what we can do to improve for next season.”
Still, Ford was celebrating literally from start to finish this season.
It kicked off the NASCAR season with wins in the preseason Clash at the Los Angeles Coliseum with Logano and rookie Austin Cindric’s victory in the Daytona 500 and then closed it with Logano’s win and Cup championship.
“At the end of the day, at the end of the season, it’s the championship that matters. So to get the Truck championship and the Cup championship, that means so much. Great to see our young drivers excelling as well,” Rushbrook said.
“So with Austin Cindric as a rookie to come in at the Daytona 500 and to win and Chase Briscoe getting a win in Phoenix early in the season, strength across our different teams and our drivers, we’re really happy with where our program is right now.”
