Penske haters might get a taste of their own medicine in the most ironic way

After Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval came to an end, Team Penske's Joey Logano was eliminated from championship contention, having fallen short of the eighth and final spot in the round of 8 after Tyler Reddick rallied to claim it late.

But Logano ended up joining the 23XI Racing driver in the semifinal round anyway, keeping alive the hope for yet another Championship 4 appearance in an even-numbered year for the driver of the No. 22 Ford.

Hendrick Motorsports' Alex Bowman initially advanced to the round of 8 for the first time since 2020, but his No. 48 Chevrolet failed post-race technical inspection, as it was found to not be in compliance with the minimum weight requirements.

The points Bowman lost from his disqualification resulted in him dropping below the round of 8 cut line and Logano moving back above it.

Logano himself has had, by his standards, a below average season. And, quite frankly, by the standards of the rest of the drivers in the round of 8, he has had a terrible season.

The other seven drivers are all in the top seven in total points scored. But Logano? 15th.

His top five and laps led totals are his lowest since 2012, and his top 10 total and average finish are his lowest since 2011. He only joined Roger Penske's team in 2013.

Yet his incredible record in even-numbered years is indisputable, even aside from the fact that he has never missed the Championship 4 in those years.

In 2018, he had one win entering the playoffs and was not considered a major championship threat. He went on to win twice and win the championship. Then in 2022, his average finish was his worst since 2017, when he most recently missed the playoffs. Once again, he got hot and won the championship.

Now here we are in 2024, and in mid-October, Logano pretty much has a 50-50 shot to advance to yet another Championship 4. He has never made it in an odd-numbered year, yet he is five for five in even years since the format was introduced in 2014.

Had he not won the five-overtime race at Nashville Superspeedway, he would have missed the playoffs entirely, yet he has already won a playoff race, and another win would propel him to the Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway. He has won at all three tracks on the round of 8 schedule, and he has won at Phoenix as well, most notably to win the 2022 title.

Could Team Penske really end up winning a championship because of another driver's disqualification?

Wouldn't that be ironic?

Back in March, Penske's IndyCar team took two of the three podium spots in the season opener in St. Petersburg, with Josef Newgarden winning and Scott McLaughlin placing third. Six and a half weeks later, it was discovered that they had illegally manipulated the push-to-pass overtake system and were disqualified.

Chip Ganassi Racing's Alex Palou ended up winning the 2024 championship, with McLaughlin finishing in third place, 39 points behind.

But had it not been for the disqualifications, which cost McLaughlin 35 points and gained Palou four, the two would have been tied, and McLaughlin would have won the championship on a tiebreaker, given the fact that he won three races while Palou won two.

So in a year that saw Penske's IndyCar team miss out on a championship (even though Palou inevitably would have pushed harder in the finale had it come down to that) because of their own rules infraction, their NASCAR team has another shot to win a title because of another team's violation.

Team Penske have two drivers in the round of 8 instead of one, with reigning series champion Ryan Blaney still alive as well. The team are aiming to win their third straight championship, something no team has done since Jimmie Johnson won five in a row for Hendrick Motorsports from 2006 to 2010.

It hasn't been done with multiple drivers since Rick Hendrick's team won four in a row from 1995 to 1998, with Jeff Gordon winning three and Terry Labonte winning one.

Logano is still somewhat of a longshot to win the title, with his +1200 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook being the longest of the eight remaining drivers. But in both 2018 and 2022, entering the Championship 4, his odds were also the longest, and it didn't matter, as the races aren't run on paper.

Full championship odds can be found here.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway is scheduled to host the round of 8 opener this Sunday, October 20. NBC is set to broadcast the South Point 400 live beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET. Begin a free trial of FuboTV today and don't miss any of the action!