AVONDALE, Ariz. — Joey Logano stood on pit road minutes after watching Kyle Larson win the Cup Series championship at Phoenix Raceway. He delivered a fitting message about his fellow driver and the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team.
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As Logano explained, this is a team that you can never count out even when it falls out of contention for the win due to multiple issues.
"Larson's a great driver, it's a great, great team," Logano told FanBuzz after the race. "And they show up when it matters. They do that really well. They were down and out today and figured out a way to win a championship."
2025 NASCAR Champions! 🏆🍾 pic.twitter.com/lrC5uNkFEg
— Kyle Larson (@KyleLarsonRacin) November 3, 2025
Finding a way — this is something the No. 5 team has had to do throughout a trying season. This team started out by winning three times in the first 12 weeks of the season. They dominated two of these races, which took place at Bristol Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway.
Yet, the season turned as May progressed. The No. 5 team went into a slump, starting with a crash in the Coca-Cola 600 and a 37th-place finish.
Some people pointed to Larson's attempt to complete both the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 in the same day as the catalyst that led to this slump. The team didn't accept this as the root cause.
Crew chief Cliff Daniels, in particular, pointed to some weather-related issues and some experiments that did not pan out. He also noted that the team experienced some struggles behind the scenes. This includes the loss of longtime team member Jon Edwards, who passed away the week of Larson's dominant Bristol win.
Regardless of the ultimate reason for the struggles, Daniels welcomed the challenge. This forced the team to band together and persevere.
Never quit
Above all else, never quit
The 5 team didn’t. They believed
— Cliff Daniels (@DanielsCliff) November 3, 2025
"It's an honor to hear that from Joey, a three-time champ, the 2024 champ," Daniels said when asked about Logano's comments. "That's something that I think has been built and bred into the culture of Hendrick Motorsports for many years, long before what we showcased on the 5.
"You think back to many magical moments with Hendrick Motorsports that were on the cusp of overcoming an obstacle, setback. That's really something that's been put on us this year. Everyone, if you draw your season plans on the whiteboard, you don't include all of the things that happened to us this summer, you don't include the struggle, all the challenges. There was no other way.
"Now that I can see it fresh, but in the rearview mirror there was just no other way for us to get toughened up, gritty enough, determined enough to show that level of perseverance that is what the team showcased today."
The challenges that Daniels mentioned only increased as the season progressed. This includes the Round of 8 of the playoffs when Larson went from contending for the win at Talladega Superspeedway to running out of fuel on the final lap.
Larson entered the Round of 8 elimination race behind Christopher Bell in the race for the final Championship 4 spot, but he enjoyed a smooth day overall as he ran well inside the top 10 and scored stage points. Bell struggled at the short track, which essentially eliminated him from the playoffs.
The championship race, however, became a struggle for Larson. He started third and ran inside of the top five in the first two stages, but he fell to 18th after stage 2 due to a slow pit stop. The team had an issue with the lug nut.
The problems compounded for Larson and the No. 5 team as the final stage progressed. He blew a tire on Lap 214 and had to limp the No. 5 Chevrolet back to pit road while the race stayed green.
Larson fell off the lead lap. In his mind, he was fully out of contention for the win and the championship. He didn't have the same pace as Denny Hamlin, and he didn't think he could work his way back through the pack.
"I mean, did anybody in here think that we had a shot?" Larson asked during his post-race press conference. "Like, I definitely — like Cliff was saying, we weren't dead, but we were pretty close. Yeah, the final stage was not going how we needed it to."
But just like Logano said, the No. 5 team found a way. They took the wave around to get back on the lead lap after a caution for Carson Hocevar. They continued working through the field in the final 80 laps.
Then they used two-tire pit stops to get back ahead of Hamlin, William Byron, and Chase Briscoe. The most important two-tire stop of the night put Larson in control of the championship battle entering overtime. He held on, finished first among the Championship 4 drivers, and locked up his second title.
Once again, the No. 5 team showed perseverance and performed when the pressure became the greatest.
"Well, it feels cool because I don't think there's anybody, any team, better at it than Joey's and the 22 team," Larson said about Logano's comments. "This playoff for us was as Joey Logano as it gets (smiling).
"Maybe not being the fastest, but our team getting us through it all, ultimately getting us the championship. It feels amazing to join him as well as the other multi-time champions. I'm really excited."
