CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Showcased in the middle of the Carolinas Aviation Museum is the Airbus A320 that in 2009 Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger successfully landed in the Hudson River.

One-hundred fifty-five lives were saved.

None were lost.

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Chris Trotman/Getty ImagesAn early exit at Kansas left Joey Logano 39th in the race and 20th in the Sprint Cup standings.

Makes the feud between Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin seem kind of small, doesn't it?

So does standing in front of an Air Force war plane surrounded by military personnel promoting the Memorial Day weekend Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

"A tough day at the track is hard," Logano said during the Tuesday event outside the museum. "Nothing compared to what these guys are doing. It does put it in perspective. Compared to what all these military guys are doing, I'm not really doing much at all."

Logano has had a lot of tough days at the track lately. It began March 24 with his last-lap crash with Hamlin at Auto Club Speedway that ended his chance of winning and sidelined his former Joe Gibbs Racing teammate with a compression fracture in his lower back.

It continued two weeks later at Texas. NASCAR confiscated the rear-end housings of his No. 22 car and the No. 2 of Penske Racing teammate Brad Keselowski, then penalized the drivers 25 points each and suspended their crew chief, car chief and lead engineer pending an appeal.

It continued on Sunday at Kansas Speedway. Logano was the innocent bystander in a spinout of another former JGR teammate -- Kyle Busch -- that destroyed his car and left him with a 39th-place finish.

So in four weeks Logano has gone from a potential win at California and move near the top five in points to 20th.

"I'm still very confident and I know my team is very confident and I'm going to lead that team to make sure it stays confident," Logano said as he awaits a May 1 appeal of the penalties. "I don't feel like it is as big of a downswing as it may look on the outside.

"I feel like I'm still right where we need to be, like we were at California, to make sure we can go win."

No, Logano isn't concerned that JGR and Hendrick Motorsports have won seven of the first eight races and have led about 73 percent of the laps.

"They obviously have some great race car drivers, they have great teams," he said of JGR and HMS. "But I don't feel like it's anything we don't have.

"So, yes, the numbers may show one thing, but the way I feel doesn't relate to the numbers."

Logano also isn't worried about whether his issues with Hamlin will continue once Hamlin returns over the next few weeks.

He took the high road when given the chance to respond to a tweet by Hamlin -- "I know Joey felt bad but he doesn't have to keep falling in the points on my count :) #seeyasoon" -- after the Kansas crash.

"Personally, I don't like being in drama and I stay away from drama and I'm not going to get carried into any drama on this situation," Logano said. "I'm going to stay focused on what my task is, and that's winning the race.

"And the rest of it is whatever to me. I'm here to win and put the past in the past."

And keep things in perspective.

Jared C. Tilton/Getty ImagesBrad Keselowski stretched his legs in the new Miller Lite Ford Fusion during Tuesday's NASCAR test.

CONCORD, N.C. -- You won't find the sterling silver Sprint Cup trophy made by Tiffany and Co. at the home of reigning champion Brad Keselowski.

"No, I don't keep trophies at my house,'' Keselowski said during Tuesday's test at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "I don't believe in building a shrine to myself. It's kind of weird."

This is why Keselowski will be a threat to repeat in 2013.

The Penske Racing driver doesn't want to be reminded about what he has accomplished. He wants to work on building toward the future, and this two-day test at CMS is the first step in doing that.

Keselowski spent about as much time focusing on how he and new teammate Joey Logano will work together as he did the new car and new manufacturer.

"I'm curious to see over time how we can work together and push each other to be the best we can be, so I've had a lot of fun with that so far,'' Keselowski said. "We've got a lot of work to do.

"We're only a half a day into two really important days, not only for Penske Racing but for the sport itself, and hopefully we can continue to show progress."

Matt Kenseth, who replaced Logano in the No. 20 at Joe Gibbs Racing after spending his entire Cup career at Roush Fenway Racing, also was focused on getting to know new people at a time drivers typically are getting away from the sport.

That he chose to be here instead of spending quality time with his family is a reason he'll be a threat in 2013.

"I've got to be honest, it was probably the first time I've been nervous in a race car -- getting in there and going out for the first time -- in as long as I can remember,'' the 2003 Cup champion said. "It's always exciting and you're a little anxious when you go do something different. It's been fun so far."

OK, it wasn't all fun. Kenseth did create more work for his new crew than they probably expected when he over-revved the engine near the end of the first practice.

"So they're back there changing it,'' he said of the engine during lunch break. "So I think the guys are in love with me right now. Like, 'Where did we find this clown? Give us the other one back.' Other than that it's been good."

Bottom line for Keselowski and Kenseth: They still are hungry to prove themselves.

And that will make both contenders in 2013.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- We've been getting subtle hints throughout the past year-and-a-half of how influential Brad Keselowski has become in the decision-making at Penske Racing.

We got hit between the eyes with it on Wednesday.

"Brad Keselowski played a really big role in getting me in here and getting a meeting with Roger [Penske]," Joey Logano said while being introduced via conference call as the driver of Penske Racing's No. 22 next season.

Interpretation: When Keselowski speaks, his team owner listens.

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Jeff Bottari/Getty Images/NASCARJoey Logano, right, on future teammate Brad Keselowski: "Hopefully, we can learn from each other and make each other better race car drivers and make our team the best we can."

Keselowski actually convinced Penske to give Logano a look during the offseason when Kurt Busch was released after his meltdown in the season finale. But because Logano had a year left on his contract at Joe Gibbs Racing and JGR had no idea Matt Kenseth was going to be available to drive the No. 20 in 2013, the talks didn't go anywhere.

So when AJ Allmendinger was suspended and ultimately released last month from the 22 for failing a drug test, and with Logano in limbo at JGR with Kenseth signed to replace him, Keselowski went back to Penske.

"Brad had come to us last year and mentioned Joey's name," Penske racing president Tim Cindric said. "He felt he was somebody he could work with. That chemistry is so important."

Keselowski calls Logano a "good guy with a ton of talent." It's quite possible he sees some of himself in the 22-year-old driver.

Both have been highly successful in the Nationwide Series. Both won a race early in their careers, then struggled in ensuing seasons. Keselowski was 25th in points during his first season at Penske Racing after winning at Talladega the year before. Logano won a fuel-mileage race at New Hampshire in his first Cup season at JGR, then fell to 24th last season.

But as we saw with Keselowski, when put in the right situation, he flourished. He has won six races the past two seasons, finishing fifth in points a year ago and ranking sixth 25 races into this season.

Expectations are that Logano's career can take off in the same way.

"Joey seems from the outside at that point in his career where we feel we can openly provide him an environment where he can be successful," Cindric said.

There's no question Logano will be a bigger asset than Allmendinger. Logano's current and soon-to-be former teammates, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, can't say enough good things about Logano's contributions -- particularly this season.

"Joey has phenomenal feedback and notes," Busch said on Tuesday when Kenseth was introduced as Logano's 2013 replacement. "He's a great note-taker and does a lot of stuff that Denny and I don't do.

"I love Joey to death. He's one of the hardest-working drivers out there."

Yet more similarities with Keselowski. Few work harder or are more involved with their team than the 28-year-old from Michigan.

"Hopefully, we can learn from each other and make each other better race car drivers and make our team the best we can," Logano said.

The downside of this is Sam Hornish Jr. He has poured his heart and soul into becoming a candidate to drive the No. 22 next year, but ultimately Keselowski and Penske saw more potential in Logano.

Unless sponsorship for a full Cup ride steps forward, which is unlikely at this point, Hornish will be relegated to another full-time Nationwide Series ride with a few Cup races next season.

But as JGR officials believed they couldn't pass up the opportunity to sign Kenseth, Keselowski believed Penske couldn't pass up the opportunity to sign Logano.

And as we are seeing more and more every day, when Keselowski speaks, people listen.

"He's the one that called me and said, 'Hey, this is a great opportunity for you,'" Logano said. "He was pretty involved in getting me here, for sure, as he is in most of the decisions that happen here at Penske."

Joey Logano may be faced with the toughest decision of his young career.

He also may be faced with the easiest.

If one of his two offers for a 2013 Sprint Cup ride indeed is from Penske Racing to drive the No. 22 -- or even a third Penske car -- it could be a no-brainer unless Joe Gibbs Racing comes up with sponsorship in a hurry.

Logano, 22, has been with JGR since he was 16. The organization has a lot invested in him and Logano has a lot invested in the organization. There are loyalty issues on both sides.

But without a guarantee of sponsorship to drive a full season in 2013 and beyond, and with primary sponsor Home Depot likely going to Matt Kenseth next year, the opportunity to latch on with Shell Pennzoil or another sponsor at Penske would be too good to pass up.

Here's what we know: Logano has two offers on the table, including one from Gibbs. The JGR offer depends on sponsorship, and team owner Joe Gibbs said Wednesday on ESPN that "everything is up in the air'' with Logano.

Without directly addressing Kenseth, Gibbs said he hoped to be able to announce something in two weeks, when the Cup series coincidentally will be in Atlanta, the headquarters for Home Depot.

Logano said last week he should have clarity in a few days to two weeks, with the two weeks now in the equation since a few days have passed. He also was noncommittal on whether he preferred to stay at JGR.

Team owner Roger Penske said last weekend at Watkins Glen he hoped to have an announcement on the No. 22 by the Chase opener at Chicagoland Speedway the weekend of Sept. 16. He didn't rule out Sam Hornish Jr., who has been in the car since AJ Allmendinger was suspended and subsequently released for failing a drug test.

Penske also suggested there are other options.

However this saga unfolds, it will happen in the next month, probably in two weeks. The longer it goes on, the more it feels like Logano will leave JGR.

Predicting where Logano lands may be easier than who will win the title, or even make the Chase as a wild card.

So I reached out to RJ Bell of Pregame.com in Las Vegas. Here are his latest odds for winning the title: Jimmie Johnson, 2.5-1; Tony Stewart, 7-1; Denny Hamlin, 8-1; Brad Keselowski, 9-1; Dale Earnhardt Jr., 9-1; Kasey Kahne, 10-1; Matt Kenseth, 10-1; Greg Biffle, 10-1; Kevin Harvick, 15-1; Jeff Gordon, 15-1; Kyle Busch, 18-1; Carl Edwards, 25-1; Clint Bowyer, 25-1; Martin Truex Jr., 30-1; Ryan Newman, 75-1; Joey Logano, 75-1.

Bell doesn't set odds on who will earn the two wild-card spots, but as you can see by the odds, Kahne and Gordon are favored.