Brad Keselowski and his No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion team looked to be set for a Top 10 finish in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but a late race incident prevented that from happening.
BK was caught up in some Chase championship drama on a restart with 10 laps to go in the Ford EcoBoost 400. Joey Logano made a dive to the bottom to make a pass of Carl Edwards, both championship contenders. Edwards blocked Logano, forcing the Team Penske driver to drive through him and send him spinning—Logano also skidded up the track, right in Brad’s path. With nowhere to go, BK wrecked, relegating him to a 35th-place finish.
“It was really unfortunate how the race played out at the end,” Brad said. “It’s a product of a format that’s based on putting everything and risking everything. I understand why it happened on both ends.”
Qualifying second, Brad claimed his sixth front row start of 2016. He started the race alongside 2014 Sprint Cup Champion Kevin Harvick and maintained the second position until the first caution from Ryan Blaney on lap 27. Using the yellow as an opportunity to pit, crew chief Paul Wolfe called his driver in for a fresh set of tires and a fill on fuel, and he lost a spot to Edwards.
Restarting third on lap 35, Logano was able to pass on the outside line. The changing conditions on the 1.5-mile racetrack were not suiting well for the Deuce, as it dropped back to seventh by lap 55, falling behind Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Austin Dillon. Radioing in that the car is tight on center, and loose off the corners, Brad was slower down the straightaways as he couldn’t get back to the gas as quickly as his competitors.
Kes lost another spot to Kyle Larson on lap 59 back to eighth, and he pitted 10 laps later for a round of routine servicing while jumping back up to P7 in the exchange. Lap 77 saw Larson gain his spot back, three laps before the next caution for a spinning Jeffrey Earnhardt. Pitting again for a valuable fresh set of tires, he exited pit road in eighth and restarted there on lap 86.
Three laps after the restart, Matt Kenseth passed BK, sending him back to ninth, where he stayed for the duration of that run until the next round of green flag stops on lap 118. Gaining a spot in the full-service stop, he cycled out to eighth, before passing Dillon and Johnson for P6.
Kes pitted more under green on lap 153. The Michigan native cycled out to sixth again after another four-tire and fuel stop. Brad held onto the position when a lap 171 debris caution flew, bringing everyone back into the pits. Another full pit stop was used to gain him a position, as he passed Kyle Busch for a P5 restart.
Going green on lap 179, he quickly slid back to seventh on the treacherous inside line before Johnson passed him for eighth on lap 196. On lap 203, Brad took the spot back from the No. 48, also passing Martin Truex Jr. and Harvick on the same lap. Three circuits later, Blaney made contact with the wall once again, bringing the caution back out. The caution allowed Wolfe to call his driver back in for another set of Goodyear Eagles and fuel with an air pressure adjustment — losing four spots in the process.
Restarting from P9 on lap 212, he passed Rookie of the Year Chase Elliott three laps later. Another 15 laps had gone by, and Kenseth was able to work his way around the Deuce before they were both able to pass Denny Hamlin to reclaim control of P8. On lap 252, the race took a championship changing caution as Dylan Lupton brought out the yellow for a flat tire. Coming in one last time for a set of fresh rubber, the 2 Crew prepared for a seventh place restart. When that restart came, melee ensued as the top two championship contenders, Logano and Edwards, tangled in front of Kes, collecting him in their damage.
The red flag flew after the large wreck. Another quick caution came after the restart, prompting an Overtime finish. Logano recovered from the wreck with minimal damage had one final shot at Johnson on the final restart, but Johnson was just too much in crunch time. Logano slipped trying to find a way around the 48, and Johnson drove on to his seventh Sprint Cup Championship, tying the likes of Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt.
“Congrats to Jimmie Johnson, certainly,” Brad said. “He accomplished what many people thought was no longer possible in this era of parity in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.”
The 2 Crew will now have a little over three months before returning to the racetrack for a points event in the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 26, 2017.
Team BKR Ends Their Season with a Pair of Top 5’s
Brad Keselowski Racing ended their campaign in style as both drivers managed to come home in Top 5 finishing positions.
Tyler Reddick scored a runner-up result in his last race as a full-time driver for the organization, as his No. 29 pit crew continually gained him spots on pit road all race long. Finishing his season with a win and a pole, along with eight Top 5 finishes, Reddick was able to be the top driver outside of the Chase, finishing the year ninth in points.
“The Cooper Standard Careers For Veterans pit crew deserves a raise, because we wouldn’t have had a shot at winning if it wasn’t for their awesome pit stops. We had a lot of fun this year. We were still very fast at times, but just couldn’t capitalize on those moments to win as many races as we would have liked,” he said.
Teammate Daniel Hemric brought his No. 19 F-150 home in fifth place, also in his final race for BKR. With his two runner up results, and seven P3 finishes, it propelled the Kannapolis driver to sixth in the final standings.
“Tonight was a testament to not giving up. I’m glad that we could finish off the year with a top five; I’m frustrated that we couldn’t a win for these guys, but tonight was a solid effort for both BKR trucks. Thank you to Brad Keselowski, everyone at BKR, Draw-Tite, Blue Gate Bank, and everyone who has supported me throughout my career to get me to this point. I appreciate BKR and our sponsors supporting us all year in our efforts to chase wins and a championship. I hate that we came up short and weren’t able to notch a victory, but I’ve had a lot of fun and I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished as a team. I’m so grateful to have had this opportunity,” he said after his 11th Top 5 result of the season.
BKR has already stated that prospect Austin Cindric will join the team next season, along with another driver yet to be announced. The drivers will look to take their trucks to the high banks of Daytona in February for BKR’s second win at the historic venue on Feb. 24, 2017.