All Brad Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford team needed was a day free of road bumps to advance to the Round of 12, and they got that and more in the Citizen Soldier 400 at Dover International Speedway.
Brad started on the pole and spent the entire afternoon in the Top 10 before striking late to finish fourth. He now leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with 15 Top 5 finishes on the season. His sixth consecutive Top 10 finish was enough to send him through the Round of 16 with a 51-point cushion on 13th place.
“We just had a smooth, top-five to maybe seventh or eighth-place day – nothing really flashy,” Brad said. “The Miller Lite Ford was really consistent with great pit stops and execution, so kind of a fun day. It wasn’t as fun as if you led every lap and won the race, but fun to get out there and compete and race real hard and be in a spot to move forward to the next round.”
Coors Light Pole qualifying was washed out, and the field was set on points. Sitting at No. 1 on the board, Kes claimed the pole and paced the field for the first five laps before Martin Truex Jr. sailed by to claim the lead. While his Miller Lite Ford Fusion had some pace to it, the potent Toyota drivers flexed their muscles early as Kyle Busch passed on lap 12.
On lap 25, Kevin Harvick quickly closed on Brad, as he waved the No. 4 along, just eight laps before the 2014 Champion suffered from a blown tire, bringing out the first yellow of the day. Deemed as the competition caution, crew chief Paul Wolfe called his driver to the pits to replace the four Goodyear Eagles and to fill the tank with Sunoco racing fuel. The 2 Crew’s trend of excellent pit work continued as they gained a spot, setting BK up for a P2 restart on lap 40.
Dropping a spot to Truex on the restart, and another to Matt Kenseth two laps later, Brad settled in the fourth position for 20 laps. Six-time champion Jimmie Johnson passed Kes on lap 62, teammate Joey Logano passed on lap 75, and Denny Hamlin followed through, putting the Deuce seventh on the board as Brad drove conservatively around The Monster Mile.
The second caution of the afternoon came on lap 104 when the Team Penske affiliated Ryan Blaney blew a tire and made hard contact with the outside wall. Pitting once again for a fresh set of rubber and fuel, the pit crew’s fast work picked up another position. Taking the green flag on the 111th lap, Brad gave the spot back to Denny Hamlin. Three laps later, Chase Elliott passed the No. 2, before trading the rank back on lap 159. Brad had settled back into eighth when the third yellow flag of the day flew on lap 181 for Chase hopeful Kyle Larson’s blown tire flew.
Pitting again for four tires and fuel, the 2 Crew gained another two positions, setting their driver up for a lap 190 P6 restart. Instantly passing Logano and Hamlin, Brad jumped up to fourth. Three circuits after going green, it transitioned back to yellow as Jamie McMurray’s motor expired on the frontstretch, ending the championship hopes for both Chip Ganassi Racing drivers.
After restarting from on lap 199 from fourth, the No. 2 passed Kyle Busch for third, just to trade the spot back 10 laps later. Radioing in that his car is slightly on the loose side, he made a scheduled green-flag stop on lap 279 for sticker tires and fuel. When the cycle completed, Brad found himself up a position as race leader Jimmie Johnson encountered his second pit road violation in this round of the Chase.
Kes visited pit road for the final time on lap 365 under green, where Wolfe put another set of new Eagles on the car, while giving enough fuel to make the distance. Cycling out P4 behind Chase Elliott, the Michigan native ended his day there.
“We had a decent day. We wanted to be just a little bit faster, but we’re just kind of gnawing away with these top-fives here these first three races, which is good,” he said.
Truex claimed his second win of the Chase, leading 187 of 400 laps, the most of any driver. He joined Brad and Busch as the only Cup drivers with four wins this season. The hot streak makes Truex as the favorite thus far in NASCAR’s postseason.
Brad has finished in the Top 5 in six of his last seven races, and he was the only driver to score three Top 5 results in the Round of 16. And while the driver of the White Lite wants wins, he knows that a string of Top 5s will carry him all the way to the championship race.
“We’ve just had a solid three races here. Nothing flashy, but nice, strong, consistent top-fives. That’s something to be proud of and we have to keep it going and keep finding the speed and hope to get some wins along the way so we can be ready for Homestead,” Brad said. “Of course, we want to get the wins, but top-fives will carry you a long ways. I’m happy with that with the Miller Lite Ford.”
He and his crew will head to Charlotte as the seventh seed when they take the green flag for the Bank of America 500 on Saturday, Oct. 8, live on NBC at 7 p.m. ET.
CHASE STANDINGS
- Martin Truex Jr. – 3,000
- Kevin Harvick – 3,000
- Kyle Busch – 3,000
- Matt Kenseth – 3,000
- Joey Logano – 3,000
- Chase Elliott – 3,000
- Brad Keselowski – 3,000
- Kurt Busch – 3,000
- Denny Hamlin – 3,000
- Carl Edwards – 3,000
- Jimmie Johnson – 3,000
- Austin Dillon – 3,000