RFK Racing is on the upswing in its second year with Brad Keselowski among its driver-owner ranks. Both Keselowski and Chris Buescher are well-positioned to make the Cup Series playoffs, with Buescher taking his third series win last time out at …
RFK Racing is on the upswing in its second year with Brad Keselowski among its driver-owner ranks. Both Keselowski and Chris Buescher are well-positioned to make the Cup Series playoffs, with Buescher taking his third series win last time out at Richmond. The company is as consistent as any in the Ford ranks. Its alliance partner, Rick Ware Racing, has landed a franchise driver in Justin Haley.
All these positive trends lead to a natural question: Why not add more cars to the fold moving forward?
“I think we definitely would like to do that,” Keselowski said Saturday at Michigan International Speedway. “(But) you know, it’s easier said than done.”
“For the time being, I think we’re quite satisfied with the relationship we’re building with the Rick Ware Racing cars, which allows us to kind of add some depth to our roster without going out and buying another charter right now.”
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Charters are proving the be the challenging part of expansion for Keselowski and others. In the second year of the Next Gen era, with the terms of an upcoming media rights deal looking positive, teams are taking a wait-and-see approach to their futures.
“It’s almost impossible to buy a charter,” Keselowski said. “Nobody’s selling one.
“No matter what your offer is, you can’t buy one. I think there’s been some people knocking on the door with a lot of money, and the answer is ‘Your money’s not good anywhere.’”
The forthcoming media rights deal is playing a key role in those decisions. NASCAR’s current deals with FOX and NBC are set to expire at the conclusion of the 2024 season, opening the sport up to new opportunities.
One domino in the rights discussion has already fallen. NASCAR announced in July that is had landed a seven-year deal with The CW Network — a free, over-the-air broadcast network that will carry all 33 Xfinity Series races starting in 2025.
The move, which Keselowski called “a big win for our industry,” has been met with positivity. Its something the Michigander hopes carries over to the discussion for NASCAR’s other two national series.
“To be on broadcast for all the races for that series, I think that gives us a high level of exposure for that series that hopefully transcends into whatever the media rights deal is for the Cup Series, or at least complements it some way,” he said. “I think that’s an exciting moment for our sport that probably is not fully understood at this moment. If we’re fast forwarding the clock, you know, five or 10 years, I think we’re gonna look back at it and say that was a really nice win for the sport.”
It’s too early to tell how The CW move will play out for NASCAR’s second series. But if it finds success, RFK Racing would consider returning to the Xfinity Series ranks.
“I would like to think that, with the series being (on a broadcast network), that it’ll be able to attract the partners that we would need to be able to justify that level of investment that it takes to run that series,” he said. “And ultimately, that will be the deciding factor.”
And as for adding to its Cup program?
“We would like to get to a third car,” Keselowski said. “You know, it has to be possible. And right now it’s not possible.”
Chris Buescher capped Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s dominant day at Richmond (Va.) Raceway with a trophy, holding off the field on a restart with three laps remaining to win the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 Sunday afternoon – his and the RFK …
Chris Buescher capped Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s dominant day at Richmond (Va.) Raceway with a trophy, holding off the field on a restart with three laps remaining to win the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out 400 Sunday afternoon – his and the RFK team’s first victory of the season.
Brad Keselowski (also a co-owner of RFK) and Buescher combined to lead a race-best 190-of-400 laps – Buescher’s 88 laps out front was the most laps he’s ever led in a race in his eight-year NASCAR Cup Series career. It all results in an important automatic bid into the 16-driver Playoff field with only four races remaining in the regular season.
The No. 17 RFK Ford ultimately held off last week’s race winner Denny Hamlin by a slight 0.549s although Buescher had held more than a 5s advantage on Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota up until that caution flag flew for an accident involving Noah Gragson and Daniel Suarez in the closing laps.
“It was smooth sailing trying to take care of this Fastenal Mustang. It was so good, and trying to take care of it there…about the time (crew chief) Scott (Graves) said over the radio, ‘It’s working perfect, keep it up,’ and then there’s a caution,’’ said Buescher with a smile.
“But we were so strong during the race, I had a good feeling there about it,’’ added Buescher who now has three career NASCAR Cup Series wins. “So awesome to pull it off. I’m proud of everybody. That was a long way from the back.’’
That late-race yellow flag was the only caution flag on the day other than the two stage breaks, with the afternoon racing at the Richmond three-quarter mile track being physically demanding under intense heat – over 130 degrees inside the race car. As seventh-place finisher Martin Truex Jr. said smiling after the race, “My cheek feels like it’s sunburned. It was like a hair dryer blowing on you.’’
The 30-year old Texas native Buescher, however, handled the heat and the field, starting 26th but steadily working his way forward. He first cracked into the top five by lap 160 of the 400-lap race, chasing down then-leaders Bubba Wallace, Tyler Reddick, Keselowski and Hamlin.
For a race with so many green flag laps, it was actually issues on pit road that thwarted several winning efforts, not problems racing on the track.
Wallace’s 80 laps out front mid-race in the No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota marked the most laps led in a single race in his career, but he ultimately had to play catch-up when his team had a slow tire change on green flag pit stop on lap 175. He finished 12th.
With 56 laps remaining, race polesitter and Wallace’s 23XI teammate Tyler Reddick got flagged for violating the commitment line coming to pit road for green flag stop, relegating him from running among the top three to desperately trying to remain on the lead lap with the laps counting down. He finished 16th after leading 81 laps early – every lap of stage one en route to claiming his fourth stage win.
Similarly, Keselowski suffered a misstep in the pits after his No. 6 RFK Ford led a race-best 102 laps. He made an awkward turn into his pit during a green flag stop with 115 laps remaining and it cost just enough time to allow his teammate Buescher to take the lead with under 100 laps remaining.
“We wanted to finish 1-2. That’s the ultimate goal, but we still had a heckuva day,’’ said Keselowski, who finished sixth and won stage two — his third stage win of the season.
Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch – the all-time active winner at Richmond – finished third, his best showing on a short track this season. Team Penske’s Joey Logano rallied in the late laps to finish fourth and Stewart-Haas Racing’s Ryan Preece turned in his best showing of the season with a fifth place run.
Keselowski and Truex finished sixth and seventh followed by SHR’s Aric Almirola, Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon and SHR’s Kevin Harvick. Chase Briscoe finished 11th giving SHR one of its best full team efforts of the season – all four cars inside the top 11.
Every car in the 36-car field finished the race, the first time the full field was running at the end since 2018.
Buescher is now the 12th driver to win a race in 2023, leaving four Playoff positions still available for a new winner or the top drivers in points. Harvick and Keselowski hold more than a 100-point advantage on the 16th place cutoff. Wallace is up 54 points and Front Row Motorsports driver Michael McDowell holds an 18-point buffer on Joe Gibbs Racing rookie Ty Gibbs for that 16th position. Kaulig Racing’s A.J. Allmendinger is 22 points behind McDowell.
Four races now remain to settle the 2023 Playoff field. The series moves north next week for Sunday’s Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Harvick is the defending race winner.
In late January, when NASCAR officials scheduled a two-day test for a new short-track aero package, six drivers were chosen to participate. Among them was Brad Keselowski and the No. 6 team from RFK Racing. Keselowski ended up making an impression …
In late January, when NASCAR officials scheduled a two-day test for a new short-track aero package, six drivers were chosen to participate. Among them was Brad Keselowski and the No. 6 team from RFK Racing.
Keselowski ended up making an impression on another one of the drivers there.
“I’m like, ‘Holy smokes, the 6 car is really fast,’ and I felt like he was going to have a good year this year,” said Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing.
Bell’s recollection came in response to being asked if the two RKF Racing cars, Keselowski’s and Chris Buescher’s No. 17, are for real this season. Both currently hold down spots on the playoff grid and have taken a clear step forward in performance from a season ago.
“Honestly, it’s funny you bring that up,” Bell said before referring to the test. “Week in, week out, it seems (Keselowski’s) a top 10, top five car. So, it certainly seems they’re headed in the right direction.”
Keselowski is 11th in the overall NASCAR Cup Series championship standings and 13th on the playoff grid. He has a 99-point gap on the cutline after finishing 11th Sunday night at Nashville Superspeedway, with nine races left in the regular season.
Buescher is 12th in the overall championship standings and 14th on the playoff grid. His gap to the cutline is 98 points after finishing a quiet and disappointing 18th at Nashville.
“They’ve definitely gotten better for sure,” said reigning series champion and fellow Ford driver Joey Logano. “They’ve done a good job at keeping up with the rest of the Fords and that’s your baseline. You have to think about where you are and what you’re competing with. From that standpoint, they seem to have made huge gains from last year at this point.
“But a little hit or miss, probably at times. There are times when one of them really hits it, and the other might be a little off, and there are times that they’re like the best car and can win, and there are times they’re not. I think they’re growing and getting better for sure.”
Neither RFK driver made the postseason a year ago. But the 2022 season was one of change as the company welcomed a new era with Keselowski joining as a driver and co-owner. There has been a laundry list of changes made over the last year, some behind-the-scenes, some within the race teams and some, like painting the walls that have nothing to do with the cars going fast.
And yet, both cars are noticeably faster this season. Keselowski has six top-10 finishes and Buescher has seven. At this point a year ago, both drivers needed a win to make the playoffs where it’s now possible – baring the number of race winners, of course – to put both cars into the postseason on points potentially.
Kyle Larson has “definitely” noticed the turnaround as he’s found himself racing both RFK cars more regularly. Larson saw the progress throughout last season but feels it’s been tenfold in 2023.
“Chris Buescher, he’s a very underrated driver,” Larson said. “He’s quiet; nobody really talks about him much, and he’s definitely one of the most talented drivers in the field. And the same goes for Brad. Obviously, he’s a champion.
“He’s been quiet the last few years, but he’s still got the talent to do it, and they’ve done a good job as a team to grow and build and get back to competitive form. I know a win is going to be in his future, for sure, and it’s going to be very satisfying for him whenever he gets it done.
“They’re only a few points behind me, so they’ve obviously been consistent. Wherever they’ve been finishing, I feel like they must be consistent because I have not been consistent, and they’re up in the mix. They’ve done a great job.”
Larson and Tyler Reddick mentioned it’s nice to see a team run well when you know people who work there. Larson is familiar with some members of Keselowski’s team because they moved there from Chip Ganassi Racing, and Larson is a former Ganassi driver. Reddick is glad to see things start to pan out after such a big career move for Keselowski.
Both RFK cars have taken a step forward this year. Nigel Kinrade/Motorsport Images
“It has been like, ‘Oh damn, now I have to try and race Brad and pass him.’ Or Chris,” said Reddick. “It is cool to see that they’re turning it around and doing what they want to do.”
Denny Hamlin also had high praise.
“I think certainly they’ve been, at times, the banner Ford stable,” Hamlin said. “You look at the 4 car, [Kevin Harvick] he’s definitely an outlier for SHR and kind of leads the Ford camp as far as consistent results.
“But as far as an organization, combining them, I would say RFK has been one of the best Ford teams out there. Certainly, I would say what they are putting out there on the racetrack is for real.”
Keselowski and Buescher acknowledge a lot of racing left to go. Very much in sync, Keselowski and Buescher mentioned the need and push to win races. Buescher did go to victory lane late season at Bristol Motor Speedway, which was proof of concept for the organization.
Buescher does not like to point race and doesn’t want to fall into that trap over the next nine weeks. He wants to see the No. 17 team stick to what they’ve been doing, and if they continue to be competitive each week, the points will handle themselves.
“It’s not complete yet,” Buescher said of having a chance to put both cars in the postseason. “The story is ongoing, and we have a lot of work ahead of us. But it is a measure of a tremendous amount of progress from this point last year for RFK for both of our teams. It’s been a lot of work. This car has been a lot of work. All the change at RFK has been a lot of work.
“It’s cool to see some results from that. We’re still trying to figure out how to get more wins and be in contention, just be a few spots better each week and that’ll definitely help us. But it’s measurable change and improvement, and that’s solid for everybody back at the shop and the track. It’s showing every week at any kind of racetrack we go to, and it’s not just road courses or speedways. Every track we go to, we are night and day better than we were last year.”
There were fleeting moments of potential last season for RFK Racing, including the win at Bristol in which Buescher and Keselowski combined to lead 278 of 500 laps. Buescher finished 21st in the championship standings last season. Keselowski was 24th.
Buescher is positioned to surpass the total number of top-10 finishes he earned last season (10). His next top-five finish will give him one more than he had all of last year.
“I think we’ve got some good vibes going; Chris is on a really big hot streak,” Keselowski said. “He’s run really well the last three or four races, been in contention to win, he won a stage in the Coke 600 and won (a heat race) of the All-Star Race, (was) really good at Sonoma.
“A lot of really great energy there, and they’re kind of scuttling their way up in the points. A lot of excitement there.”
Keselowski has already tied the number of top-10 finishes he had a season ago and surpassed the total number of top-five finishes. But the former series champion said there have been “a lot of ups and downs” with the No. 6 team.
“I felt we were really strong at Charlotte and maybe not as good as we wanted to be at a couple of other places here lately,” Keselowski said. “So, either way, it’s better to be in than be outside looking in, but we’re not as comfortable as we’d like to be. We’d like to have wins. That’s what the sport is about.
“We’ve done a great job, I think, elevating ourselves from irrelevant to relevant, but I don’t want to stop there. We’ve got another step to take, and so we’re working really hard to take that step and put it together. I’m working on it every day. We’re proud of the progress we’ve made, but we need to be winning races.”
If there were an award for the “Most Improved” team, it would go to RFK Racing. Although Keselowski laughed that with how much improvement they needed to make, he’s not sure that’s something to be proud of or not.
But the gains have them looking realistically at the postseason and have the attention of the competition.
“We’ve come a long way, without a doubt, and we’ve got a real shot of putting both cars in the playoffs,” Keselowski said. “But a lot can happen between now and then. But either way, glad to be where we’re at rather than be looking from the outside.”
The NASCAR schedule is becoming less predictable each season, as evidenced by the sport’s first street course race next weekend in Chicago. Former Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski knows what he wants to see next. “I’ve been pretty steady on this, …
The NASCAR schedule is becoming less predictable each season, as evidenced by the sport’s first street course race next weekend in Chicago. Former Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski knows what he wants to see next.
“I’ve been pretty steady on this, I think, for a number of years, but we have to get to Canada,” Keselowski said Saturday at Nashville Superspeedway. “There is a big market for us there. We need to get to Canada and on an oval in Canada.
“I think that particular market is underserved and full of a ton of NASCAR fans that would help us branch out somewhat internationally while in a manner I think could control costs for the owners in a respectful way.”
NASCAR visited Montreal, Canada, from 2007 through 2012, with the Xfinity Series running at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. The Craftsman Truck Series also visited Canadian Tire Motorsports Park from 2013 through 2019, and the race even once served as a playoff race.
But Keselowski notably said an oval race.
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“I think the layup for us as a sport is to find these road courses in different countries, and that’s better than nothing,” Keselowski said, “But it’s not the way I would prefer to show what NASCAR’s capable of.”
NASCAR’s top stars running an oval race in Canada would not be completely new. Buddy Shuman won a Grand National race at Stamford Park in Niagara Falls, Ontario, in 1952. While it was an oval race, it should be noted it was a half-mile dirt track that was mostly used for horse racing.
The race at Stamford Park is said to be the first NASCAR race run outside of the United States.
Lee Petty won a Grand National race in 1958 at Canadian Exposition Stadium in Toronto, Ontario — a 0.333-mile paved oval.
NASCAR’s current presence in Canada is through the popular Pinty’s Series. The schedule features a mix between ovals, road courses, and dirt tracks.
Keselowski’s support of Canada comes from first-hand knowledge. Once a full-time Xfinity Series driver for JR Motorsports and Team Penske, Keselowski ran three races at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and saw how it was a good market for NASCAR.
“Just the passion out of the fans,” Keselowski said of what stood out. “When I go to races, go through the infields over the years, meet our fans, there’s just a significant fan base in Canada that I think just has a big desire to be a part of our sport and would embrace it in a way that we really need.”
Chris Buescher led wire-to-wire and won the second heat race Saturday night to earn a spot on the front row in the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. The RFK Racing driver led all 60 laps. He started from the pole and led to the …
Chris Buescher led wire-to-wire and won the second heat race Saturday night to earn a spot on the front row in the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
The RFK Racing driver led all 60 laps. He started from the pole and led to the caution on lap 25 for rain. NASCAR officials had teams switch to wet weather tires under non-competitive pit stops.
On the restart, Buescher got the jump and drove away from the field.
“I liked our Fastenal Mustang on slicks; I was happy with it,” Buescher said. “I didn’t want to put rains on, I felt like it was still pretty dry out there, and it actually stayed dry through the end. I get it was starting to drizzle a little bit. But the car was (fast with) wets on, too, so I’m not over here complaining anymore.
“Our guys did a great job. The pit crew didn’t get to show what they could do with non-competitive stops, but I guarantee they would have got it done there too. I’m proud of this group. It’s a heck of a start. I felt really good about this thing in practice. I feel even better about it now, so slicks or wets, we’re going to be just fine.”
Austin Dillon finished second, William Byron third, Brad Keselowski fourth, and Bubba Wallace rounded out the top five.
Martin Truex Jr. finished sixth, Kyle Busch seventh, Kyle Larson eighth, Ross Chastain ninth, and Tyler Reddick 10th and last.
The results from the first heat race set the inside row for Sunday night’s All-Star Race, and the results from the second heat race set the outside row.
Without looking at the NASCAR Cup Series point standings, can you name the driver who sits ninth going into Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway? The answer is Brad Keselowski. Although he’s a former series champion, there might be an argument to be …
Without looking at the NASCAR Cup Series point standings, can you name the driver who sits ninth going into Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway?
The answer is Brad Keselowski.
Although he’s a former series champion, there might be an argument to be made that Keselowski is flying under the radar early in the season. Keselowski’s No. 6 RKF Racing team has five top-10 finishes through 11 races, which includes the last two weekends at Talladega Superspeedway and Dover Motor Speedway.
“I haven’t spent a lot of time thinking about other people’s reaction; I’ve really had my head down, and I really want us to be able to win with both cars,” Keselowski said on Wednesday. “I want us to grow to where RFK is a legit contender week in and week out.
“We’ve gone from where we kind of were last year, which I would have called the ‘irrelevant’ category, to the ‘relevant’ category – whether people see that or not. I want to get into the category where we’re a weekly contender, and we’re right on the fringe of that.”
Keselowski scored top-five finishes at Atlanta Motor Speedway (second) and Talladega (fifth). But loop data statistics show that only in five races this season has Keselowski averaged a top-10 running position: Daytona, Phoenix, Atlanta, Richmond and Dover.
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“Right now, we’re in that fifth to 10th (place) category, I think, pretty regularly,” Keselowski said. “We’re trying to grow and find what it is that we’re missing to get there, and my head has been so down on that I honestly don’t spend a lot of time thinking about others’ perceptions. I just think of my perception, which is we went from irrelevant to relevant, and we’re on the fringe of being contenders week in and week out.”
Daytona, Atlanta, and Richmond are races that Keselowski believes his team had a realistic shot to win. “It’s just a matter of time before one of those clicks,” he said.
Keselowski points to last fall as the turning point. Over the offseason, he said they “added a few more key pieces”; namely, people and resources. Every day is an opportunity for growth.
Three spots behind Keselowski in the championship standings is teammate Chris Buescher. Neither driver made the playoffs last year, but Buescher delivered a big boost with a victory at Bristol Motor Speedway in the fall.
Another concrete track, Dover, was good to the organization last weekend as Buescher and Keselowski finished inside the top 10. The next step is making that commonplace for both entries.
Turning the corner with performance is only half the job for Keselowski. Now into his second season as both a co-owner and driver, he seems more settled handling both sides of the business.
“I have more people around me to support me,” Keselowski said. “We’ve added a lot of talent to the company, which has made my days a little bit easier where I can work through some of the hardships which are still going to happen ,but work through them a little more efficiently and effectively.
“I look at Josh Sell, whom we promoted to our technical director this year. He’s been a big gain. Kevin Kidd, whom we moved into our software and analytics group. He’s helped out a ton. We continue to move people. We brought in a gentleman named Landon Foster to help us with our growing needs and set up development. And we’ve shed some things that probably weren’t too good for us as well, with different programs that weren’t serving us.
“I just think we’re more focused as a company and that transcends not just through me and my role but everyone, and it ends up, of course, equating to better results.”
Brad Keselowski came the closest he’s been in nearly two years of winning a NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway until Joey Logano left him in the dust on the last lap. And yet, the former series champion was pretty content with …
Brad Keselowski came the closest he’s been in nearly two years of winning a NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway until Joey Logano left him in the dust on the last lap.
And yet, the former series champion was pretty content with how it all went down afterward. Keselowski led 47 laps, including 29 of the last 30, en route to earning his first top-five finish of the season.
“Disappointed is a strong word,” Keselowski said. “I’m really proud of how we ran. Glad we’re leading laps. Glad we’re in position to win races. We’re controlling the things we can control.
“I’m disappointed that Joey got such a great run; I’ve got to take a look and see how…he pulled that off. But I’m not disappointed with my team.”
Keselowski and Logano engaged in a back-and-forth battle over the last 15 laps. After initially getting clear of the field with 29 laps to go, the No. 6 controlled the lanes while Logano kept trying to find a run, eventually getting a nose under Keselowski off Turn 2 with 13 laps to go. It pulled the lanes back even, and both fought for the edge.
The two stayed side-by-side until Keselowski got clear of the field again with five laps to go. But again, the run didn’t last. Coming to the white flag, Keselowski ran clear in the lead, Christopher Bell with Logano still charging on the bottom. Logano’s run came into Turns 1 and 2, and he jumped to the outside and around Keselowski.
The RFK driver had yet to see a replay when dissecting the end of the race but didn’t feel he could have done anything differently. It wasn’t that he thought he lost the race, but Logano won it on a great move. The only other move Keselowski had in his arsenal wasn’t one he wanted to pull.
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“He made a great move. He deserves credit for it,” he said. “I don’t really think there was any way I was going to stop that without wrecking us all.”
Former teammates at Team Penske, Keselowski and Logano were not unfamiliar with each others’ superspeedway prowess. But they were just two of the drivers in the main pack who put on a show as the race wound down, as the third and final stage saw the field run side-by-side more than it had in the first two stages — still a much cleaner race than the ones seen Saturday.
“This is actually one of the best races here, I think, you’re ever going to see,” Keselowski said. “I was really impressed that we were able to run the last 40, 50-something laps without everybody just wrecking each other.
“I think it was a good mix of drivers up front that ran smart races and showed you can run side by side and do this without wrecking each other. It really is the drivers that make the decision. I ran next to Joey, I think side-by-side, for 10 to 20 laps, and we were racing really hard, but we didn’t wreck each other. Tyler (Reddick) was behind me and gave great pushes, and he didn’t get crazy on them and cause us all to wreck. I really appreciate that.”
In addition to the laps led and the runner-up finish, Keselowski earned points in both stages. While it’s his first top-five finish of the season, Atlanta now makes two top-10 finishes, and he is fifth in the championship standings after five races.
“It was a good day; really solid,” Keselowski said. “I’m proud of our team, we’re just continuing to improve, and you need days like this. You just wish they were wins, but we were right there.
“It just didn’t come together there at the end. Joey got such a huge run down the frontstretch there was nothing I could do to stop it — other than wreck all of us — and that wasn’t going to do us any favors. Good day for our team overall; just one spot short.”
Including Atlanta, it’s been the best four weeks Keselowski could ask for. There is still speed to be found in his No. 6 Ford and execution that could be better, but the confidence is growing inside his team as they’ve made gains in the right direction from where they were this time a year ago.
“This is exactly the type of days we need,” Keselowski said. “Days where we score lots of points, we show people we can win races and we build our program.”
As the first driver hit with an L2 penalty for modifications made to a single-source supplied part on the Next Gen car, Brad Keselowski understands the situation NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports are in this week. Keselowski, admittedly, is not …
As the first driver hit with an L2 penalty for modifications made to a single-source supplied part on the Next Gen car, Brad Keselowski understands the situation NASCAR and Hendrick Motorsports are in this week.
Keselowski, admittedly, is not educated enough to speak to the specific issue with the Hendrick Motorsports louvers, not having seen the ones confiscated last weekend at Phoenix Raceway. NASCAR officials deemed they were modified and hit the team with 100-point deductions, playoff point deductions and fines.
A year ago, Keselowski’s No. 6 Ford was under scrutiny after the spring race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. His car was one of the random cars taken by NASCAR post-race for further evaluation at the R&D Center. It was found that a tail panel had been modified, which Keselowski later explained was a repair job that could have been better, forcing NASCAR’s hand when it came to issuing a penalty and showing the pieces were not to be touched.
“It was tough,” Keselowski said. “Immediate emotions are to be frustrated and angry, but I don’t feel that way today. In fact, when I saw NASCAR a couple of weeks ago, we had a car get inspected after Daytona, I made a comment to them. Honestly, I told them, ‘Thank you. It’s one of the best things to ever happen to us.’ We came out of it better. It was good for the industry.
“From our perspective, it changed our culture inside of the company to where we had better behaviors. I thought it set a tone for the industry — again, I can’t speak for Hendrick, but with our issues.”
He was forthcoming with information after the process played out with RFK Racing losing its appeal. Not only did Keselowski say he understood the penalty (and later in the year said NASCAR has been too lenient and can control the garage by issuing penalties like candy), but he found the appeals process to be fair and different from what he anticipated. The co-owner continued to share those same sentiments Saturday.
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“I think I made a few comments a month later about the importance of penalties in the garage. They serve a purpose,” Keselowski said. “I think it’s really easy, and I’ve fallen victim to this as well – to look at NASCAR as the boogieman. In a lot of ways, they’re trying to help us and trying to help the sport and make sure that it can be healthy. Whether or not NASCAR is right or Hendrick is right with their penalty, I don’t know to that specific situation, but as a whole, I do understand the inclination and the emotion behind the teams and maybe the fans getting fired up over a penalty.
“But in the end, penalties are there for a reason. They’re there to make this circus somewhat manageable and sustainable, so as to what ends up happening with Hendrick, I can’t speak to it again, not knowing enough, but from my perspective and kind of having lived it, I’m probably 180 from where I was a year ago on it, and I understand it at a high degree.”
Hendrick Motorsports is arguing the parts are not being provided to the teams to the specifications they should be. The organization also said there’s been a lot of dialogue between the teams, manufacturers and NASCAR, but it changes weekly on whether the parts can be cleaned up if they don’t fit properly.
Both a driver and owner, Keselowski acknowledges there are issues with the parts. It comes down to ensuring teams have cleared any work with NASCAR.
“Yeah, there’s always a part somewhere that’s not what you want it to be, and there’s a portal that NASCAR has to submit those parts to, and there’s usually some dialogue and communication around that,” Keselowski said. “Generally speaking, I feel like NASCAR has been amenable to work through those and has gotten significantly better over the last year.
“We have parts, here and there, that are issues, and NASCAR has come up and said, ‘Hey, you can do this,’ or, ‘You can’t do it.’ It’s really more or less about the communication with them.”
