Cup Series champion Joey Logano has admitted that he planned to wreck his rival Christopher Bell as the pair battled it out for the race victory at the NASCAR All-Star Race.
Bell beat Logano to secure his first All-Star Race victory at North Wilkesboro Speedway, but arguably benefitted from the ‘Promoter's Caution’.
The caution was a new feature introduced to the 2025 All-Star Race, with the president and CEO of Speedway Motorsports, Marcus Smith, allowed to choose when a ‘Promoter’s Caution’ would be thrown to bunch up the field for a late restart.
Unfortunately for Logano, the yellow flag was thrown on Lap 217 when the reigning champion was in the lead ahead of Bell, and the No. 22 driver decided to stay out on track instead of pitting, which made him vulnerable to his rivals on fresh tires on the restart.
Logano and Bell battled hard over several laps, but the Joe Gibbs Racing star eventually made his way through and went on to take the win.
Logano was left understandably frustrated after the race, and, remarkably, even admitted he planned to wreck his rival due to how he had raced him in the penultimate laps.
“I’m glad you had a blast, I’m p***ed off right now,” Logano said when interviewed on pit road post-race.
“I did all I could do to hold them off, he [Bell] got under me and released the brake and gave me no option. He just ran me up into the wall.
“If I could've got to him, he was going around. After a move like that I just couldn’t get back to him. It was too much to try and make up due to the tire deficit.
“I’m just frustrated after you lead so many laps and the car is so fast and you don’t win and it hurts quite a bit.”
Logano also criticised the ‘Promoter’s Caution’, and labelled it a ‘gimmick’ stating he wanted to have a word with Smith for throwing the late caution.
"Yeah, I'm all about no gimmicks with the caution," he added.
"I am all about that. Me and Marcus Smith aren't seeing eye to eye right now, OK? I've got to have a word with him."