In his third consecutive XFINITY Series race of 2017, Brad Keselowski bounced back from an unscheduled pit stop from a cut tire to record a solid Top 10 finish.
“We had a good Discount Tire Ford Mustang today and I think with a few more adjustments we may have had a winning car,” he said. “Unfortunately we had a loose wheel right as the final segment started and it was a grind to make that track position back up.”
Starting in second place, the qualifying session wasn’t a total throwaway as BK set the new Las Vegas Motor Speedway track record at 186.220mph in Round 1 – besting his Pole lap, and former record from 2010. Once the green flag dropped, a great battle with reigning NXS Champion Daniel Suarez ensued, with the No. 19 taking the position on lap 3, dropping the No. 22 to third. Just three laps later, the first yellow of the day flew when Stephen Leicht made contact with the outside wall. Brad reported to his crew that his car didn’t have the speed it needed to contend with the potent Joe Gibbs Racing entries of Suarez and Kyle Busch, and needed some adjustments to get it there.
Racing resumed on lap 10, and from the inside line, Kes was able to overtake Suarez and reclaim the second position where he remained until Kyle Larson nabbed the spot on lap 28. After another 15 laps, teammate Joey Logano in the No. 12 Ford entry dropped Brad back to fourth where he finished Stage 1. Mentioning that his Double Deuce was on the tight side, and that he didn’t have the turn in the car he needed, the pit crew went to work via an air pressure adjustment, falling to fifth after a four-tire stop.
Taking the green on lap 51 from fifth, he took the position back from Justin Allgaier, and stayed there until the next yellow on lap 71 from a Matt Tifft spin. Restarting behind Logano in fourth on lap 75, the Team Penske duo drafted past Busch on the backstretch, allowing BK to take hold of third until Brendan Gaughan spun four laps later, triggering another caution. While most of the field came in for pitwork, crew chief Greg Erwin called for his car to stay out on the track where they assumed the race lead. The six-lap green-flag stretch took the field to the end of Stage 2, led by the No. 22 – Brad’s only Stage victory of the afternoon.
Pitting under the Stage yellow, the 22 Crew fitted a fresh set of Goodyear Eagles and filled the tank with fuel, sending him back out in P15, behind the cars that came in under the previous caution. The No. 22 Discount Tire Ford team encountered a road bump after 13 laps. BK diagnosed a loose left-rear wheel, which was later called as a cut tire as a result of running some debris over.
The unscheduled pit stop put Kes a lap behind the leaders, mired back in 31st position. In typical never give up fashion, he put his head down and went to work. Slowly but surely, he made his way through the field. By lap 122, the Discount Tire machine was marked up to 25th. On lap 137 the leaders began a round of scheduled pit stops, leaving Brad to hope and pray for a caution to fly while on the tail end of the lead lap. The prayers were answered on lap 160 when a debris caution was called, allowing BK to catch up to the leaders and put the No.22 back in contention.
Lined up P14 on lap 167, he quickly jumped up two spots after the first lap, but again returned to yellow on lap 170 when Ray Black Jr. spun. Restarting from the outside of row six on lap 175, Kes passed Brandon Jones for 11th, but another quick caution on lap 181 for JJ Yeley appeared. The lap 187 restart set up for a four lap run, where the tricky inside line bunched up and dropped BK to 14th before Tifft and Spencer Gallagher’s lap 191 crash.
Setting up for the final six-lap stint from P12, he had enough to jump up to 10th, marking his seventh straight Top 10 in the series. For Team Penske, success continued as teammate Joey Logano piloted his No.12 REV Group Ford to Victory Lane.
“Congrats to Joey on getting Team Penske to Victory Lane today,” Brad said. “It’s been a good weekend for the team so far.”
Brad managed to keep his No.22 up front for 12 laps during the afternoon, en route to some valuable Stage win points towards the Owners Championship. Currently leading the standings with 93 points, the team has a 23 point cushion over Chip Ganassi’s No.42 entry.
Next week, Kes will give up the Double Deuce to protégé Ryan Blaney for the first XFINITY Dash 4 Cash event of the year. Tune into the DC Solar 200 from Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday, March 18th at 4p.m. ET to see if the 22 Crew can return to Victory Lane.