NASCAR driver Joey Logano, team owner Roger Penske, crew chief Todd Gordon and the rest of Team Penske's No. 22 team celebrated their ’18 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship yesterday during a 14-minute ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, according to Daniel McFadin of NBCSPORTS.com. President Trump said, "No matter who wins the race, you never forget what matters most: God, family and country. And nobody embodies that more than you folks. With champions like you, I am confident NASCAR will continue to excite and inspire millions of devoted fans across our nation." Team Penske President Tim Cindric, Vice Chair Walt Czarnecki and NASCAR Vice Chair Mike Helton were also in attendance for the ceremony. Penske and Logano were each "invited to make remarks" (NBCSPORTS.com, 4/30). USA TODAY's David Jackson notes several championship pro sports teams have "rejected invitations to join Trump at the White House, but NASCAR was happy to accept." Polls show the President to be "very popular among NASCAR officials and fans, many of them middle class male southerners, and the president went out of his way to praise the sport and it patrons" (USA TODAY, 5/1).
