Joey Logano called Kyle Busch because he learned from his feud with Matt Kenseth

When Joey Logano angered Matt Kenseth two years ago, he was unapologetic and didn’t attempt to mend fences with the former Cup Series champion. That decision Logano would later regret, as Kenseth’s rage continued to build and eventually bubbled over in a nefarious act that cost Logano a championship bid.

Having learned from that experience, Logano acted much differently when in a similar situation this week and didn’t hesitate to call Kyle Busch, whom Logano spun out on the final lap of last Sunday’s race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. So upset was Busch he stormed down pit road and threw a punch at Logano, resulting in a scrum involving Logano’s crew that left Busch with a gash on his forehead.

Nonetheless, Logano called Busch on Wednesday to explain the circumstances that led to him washing up the track entering Turn 3 and into the side of Busch, causing him to spin down pit road while Logano continued unimpeded. Whether Busch accepted the explanation, he wasn’t saying Friday at Phoenix International Raceway, but Logano said it was important that he at least make the effort.

“I took it on my own will to call Kyle and talk to him,” Logano said. “You guys (the media) all know how that is different. You can do a phone interview or a face-to-face interview, a lot of times your story is different when you are able to see facial reactions. To be able to talk to him face-to-face, I believe it helped.”

NASCAR met with Logano and Busch before Friday’s first practice session, as officials wanted to make sure there isn’t a repeat of what happened between Logano and Kenseth in 2015. Two years ago, Logano spun Kenseth out on the final lap during a playoff race at Kansas Speedway, taking away the win Kenseth needed to remain championship-eligible.

Kenseth would extract his revenge two weeks later at Martinsville Speedway. Following another incident with Logano that left him with a damaged car, Kenseth returned to the track nine laps behind and intentionally wrecked Logano, who had been leading a race that if he won would’ve clinched him a spot in the championship finale. Instead, he was effectively eliminated from the playoffs. (NASCAR issued Kenseth an unprecedented two-race suspension.)

That Busch and Kenseth are Joe Gibbs Racing teammates had no bearing on Logano’s changed mindset. The Team Penske driver acknowledges he handled the situation with Kenseth poorly, now understanding that if he doesn’t do something egregiously wrong it’s best to reach out in an act of goodwill.

“I made a mistake and got up into him,” Logano said. “I hate that it happened. I would take it back in a heartbeat. He asked for data when we talked on the phone and I was able to bring that with me and present that and try to explain what was going on inside my racecar. We try to move on from there.”

Going forward, Logano doesn’t know if Busch accepts his apology and explanation for why he lost control of his car. But his hope is that the two, who had been friends, can resume racing one another without further incident.

“Time will tell. I guess your actions on the race track are what speaks the loudest a lot of times,” Logano said. “I tried to be as open and honest and be an open book.

“We were racing to the checkered flag and I have no reason to do anything on purpose for fourth place. That makes no sense. We were racing hard for position and the car got loose.”