Joey Logano wins Gateway pole for Enjoy Illinois 300
NXTbets Pro | Published On: September 13, 2026
Logano pole
Team Penske driver Joey Logano grabbed the pole for the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway and did it in clean fashion. He posted a lap of 32.817 seconds at 137.124 mph, then held off Kyle Larson by 0.276 seconds for the top starting spot.
Logano’s effort stood alone in a 36-car field. He was the only driver to crack the 33-second mark, a sharp indicator of how well his Shell/Pennzoil Ford handled the track. The run gave him his first pole at Gateway, his second pole of the season and the 35th Cup pole of his career.
The performance also fit the way Logano described the car. He said the Ford was strong in both short-run and long-run trim. He said he had struggled with Turn 1 in previous Gateway qualifying sessions, then finally put together a clean lap.
Gateway speed
Larson lined up second and Ryan Blaney qualified third, giving the front of the field a familiar look for the Chase. The pole came in the second race of the 10-race Chase presented by Mobil 1, so every position at the front carried extra weight for the playoff picture.
Gateway has already treated Logano well. He won the 2022 race there from seventh starting position, and this qualifying run gave him another chance to attack the track from the front row. That matters at a place where track position can shape the race before the field settles into long green-flag runs.
Denny Hamlin entered Gateway as the defending winner and the season points leader, which added even more depth to the weekend’s competitive picture. Logano’s qualifying run did not change the fact that the race still starts with a crowded list of contenders, but it put him in the best possible spot to chase another strong result.
Penske chase
Logano said two wins in his last seven races have moved him back into championship contention. He said the No. 22 team likely needs to average more than 40 points per race over the final 10 weeks to stay in the hunt.
Blaney made the same point from a team-wide angle. He said the next two races at Gateway and Bristol were crucial to keeping Penske in title contention. He also said the team was trying to close the gap on Toyota’s speed at those tracks. That gives the organization a direct target, not just for one race but for the next part of the schedule.
The broader record gives Penske reason for confidence. Team Penske had won twice in the track’s four previous Cup Series visits, and Logano’s pole adds another strong starting point to that history. With Larson and Blaney close behind him, the race will still demand speed over the full distance, but Logano opened the weekend with the one thing every driver wanted, the best seat in the field.
