It's interesting that Joey Logano took the time to reference his mistakes during his speech at the NASCAR Awards and Champion Celebration at the Music City Center in Nashville last week. After all, he was there as the guest of honor, having won the Cup Series championship just a month ago. Still, at the end of his speech, the Team Penske driver's allusion to some of his not-so-shining moments in the past served as a way to inspire young drivers to "take risks" in their careers.
"To all the young racers out there, coming from a guy that's made plenty of mistakes — and a lot of them are still out there. They're on YouTube if you want to see them. My son's starting to learn how to YouTube, so I'm really careful about that. But, I have no regrets when it comes to the mistakes that I've made, because it's made me who I am and the person I am today," Logano said.
"I challenge everybody to take risks, make the big moves, and stand up for what's right, because it's not about winning and losing — it's about winning and growing."
While Joey didn't specifically mention any of his mistakes (though, I definitely can think of a few, like the time he tried fighting Denny Hamlin at Bristol in 2013), the risk-taking that led to those pratfalls has clearly paid off: he's got 31 Cup wins and two titles to show for it. Now, I don't think Joey was necessary encouraging drivers to get into full-on brawls with their competitors, but clearly having a fiercely competitive mindset pays off if you want to be one of the best.
Speaking of being the best, one of the other highlights of Joey's speech was his shoutout to Mario Andretti, the legendary racer who's considered to be one of the most successful drivers in the history of motorsports. Andretti introduced Logano with a speech of his own, and the respect and mutual admiration between the two was more than apparent.
"When I was a kid, six or seven years old, I got a picture signed by Mario Andretti that said, 'To Joey: Always chase your dreams,' and had that in my room for so long," Logano said. "How about this for a dream? We're living out the dream now."
