BK Chases Elusive Discount Tire ‘Home’ Win

One week after a loss by the most narrow of margins at Daytona, Brad Keselowski jumps back into the driver’s seat of the Discount Tire Ford Mustang with his sights set on Victory Lane at a track where a first place finish has eluded him.

As the NASCAR Nationwide Series descends on the Phoenix International Raceway for the Blue Jeans Go Green 200 on Saturday, Kes returns to a track where he’s all too familiar with ‘almost.’ BK has finished second in three of his last five Nationwide races at PIR.

Second place was the result for BK last week as well, as he missed a win in the DRIVE4COPD 300 by a mere .013 seconds behind Regan Smith in the season kickoff race last week at Daytona. On the heels of an Owners’ Champions in 2013, it was a strong start to the Nationwide Series season for Team Penske. But it also left BK and the No. 22 team wanting more. They believe they can find it in the desert this weekend.

“We look forward to taking the Discount Tire Mustang to Phoenix every time we see it on the schedule,” Crew Chief Jeremy Bullins said. “Not only are we in the backyard of Discount Tire, but we’ve also ran pretty well there with a couple of second place finishes in the last couple of years. We’re just looking for that little bit extra to get this car back in Victory Lane again. We’ve been close and we feel like we have a good baseline. If we’ve made the gains we think we have, we hope to take that next step.”

Since joining Team Penske in 2010, BK has raced the Discount Tire machine eight times at Phoenix and his average finish is inside the Top 10.

Brad’s last run at Phoenix did leave a sour taste, however. He finished 19th in the ServiceMaster 200 last November after a bump from the No. 2 of Brian Scott sent BK and the No. 22 into the outside wall and cost Kes a lap he was never able to get back.

But he did have a fast Ford Mustang that day and led eight laps before the accident. In fact, BK has led at least five laps in each of the last four Nationwide races at PIR. He said this week that it’s a track that agrees with him, though he believes that to be true of most drivers.

“Phoenix is a track that most drivers enjoy,” he said. “It allows us to push ourselves and our cars.”

Unlike most drivers, BK has an outstanding history of success in the Nationwide Series over the course of his career. In 206 races, he has 95 top-five finishes and 27 wins. Both numbers are third behind Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth among active drivers.

Brad has also won at 19 of the 29 tracks he’s raced at in the Nationwide Series leaving Phoenix in the minority in tracks where he has yet to visit Victory Lane. But BK refuses to take all the credit, commending his team for giving always putting him in the best position to succeed. He’s hopeful that will allow him to cross Phoenix off his list on Saturday afternoon.

“The Team Penske Nationwide Series program is top-notch,” he said. “They have consistently given me cars that are capable of running up front and this weekend should be more of the same.”

Brad ran up front early on Friday, posting the top time (27.278 seconds) and speed (131.974 mph) in the first practice for Saturday’s race. However, his speed fell off in the afternoon session, dropping to 130.011 for a lap of 27.690, and sending the No. 22 team back to work to recapture their early speed.

They’ll be back at it on Saturday morning for a qualifying run at 10 a.m. local time (12 p.m. ET). It can be seen live on Fox Sports 1. The Blue Jeans Go Green 200 presented by Cotton, The Fabric of Our Lives follows at 4 p.m. ET with coverage beginning at 3:30 p.m, ET on ABC.