LONG POND, Pa. - Joey Logano stood on top of the No. 20 high-fiving everyone he could reach in Victory Lane. Beverages were sprayed, fists were pumped and throaty shouts of celebration could be heard well down the 2 1/2-mile track.
It's what winning a Sprint Cup race is all about.
It's what Logano has waited years to truly experience. Not rain or Mark Martin would deny him this feeling.
Logano gave a crafty Martin a well-timed nudge out of the way in the closing laps Sunday at Pocono Raceway to clinch his first victory since 2009 and become the first Sprint Cup driver this season to win from the pole.
The one-time prodigy and the grizzled veteran pushing hard down the stretch was a duel to remember at Pocono.
"I didn't stop screaming until I got to Victory Lane," Logano said. "You work so hard to do this."
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This one felt like the first time for Logano after his only other career win in 125 Sprint Cup starts was a rain-shortened victory at New Hampshire. Wins count the same in the record book. But they sure do feel different.
"When you cross the line and you've won the race, to me, it's an amazing feeling," Logano said.
Logano had the top car all weekend, posting the fastest practice time Friday and then taking the pole Saturday.
Logano, once a much-hyped phenom when he broke in with Joe Gibbs Racing, was under pressure to produce victories in the final year of his four-year contract.
Logano's win continues a recent uptick of solid results in the Cup series. He has insisted this season his contract status has not added pressure.
But in Victory Lane, he hoped the victory sent a message to his critics.
"I hope it shuts them all up," he said. "It means a whole lot."
Logano signed a developmental deal with JGR and made his NASCAR national level debut at 18 in the Nationwide Series. He was so full of promise, he was dubbed "Sliced Bread." As in, greatest thing since ...
Not quite. Logano had the one victory and never finished higher than 16th in the standings in three full Cup seasons. He's 15th this year and has no deal with JGR for next season.
"I haven't been informed where I stand for next year yet, so that's all up in the air," Logano said. "Obviously, winning a race means a lot and it helps that out a ton."
Formula One
MONTREAL - Lewis Hamilton became the seventh different winner in the first seven races of the Formula One season by capturing the Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Hamilton drove his McLaren Mercedes to a win in 1 hour 32 minutes 29.586 seconds Sunday, taking advantage of fresh tires he picked up during a second pit stop while the other contenders only made one. Hamilton finished 2.5 seconds ahead of Lotus' Romain Grosjean, with Sauber's Sergio Perez in third.
