That was the end result of a wild day at Phoenix International Raceway on Sunday that saw BK’s spot in the finals threatened by strong runs at the win from Denny Hamlin and Chase Elliott. But ultimately it was Matt Kenseth who crossed victorious in the desert, allowing BK, who finished 16th after a rough weekend, to advance to the championship race on points.

“We overcame a lot of obstacles and jumped a lot of hurdles today. I am glad I don’t have to relive this day, that is for sure,” Brad said after advancing. “I am just looking forward to going to Homestead with this Miller Lite Ford team. We probably should have been locked in after Martinsville with the effort we put in that weekend so if this is a little bit of redemption then I am happy for all these guys. We’ve had a good year and they deserve a shot at another championship. We have that now and we will make the most of it.”

The Deuce lacked the speed necessary to compete for a race win in Phoenix that would’ve locked BK into the championship automatically. Instead, the 2 Crew had to their best with what they had, keep the Miller Lite Ford Fusion as clean and free of incident as possible and then hope that one of the four other playoff drivers not already locked into the championship: Hamlin, Elliott, Ryan Blaney and Jimmie Johnson failed to win that automatic entry.

Johnson, the seven-time Cup champion, was a non-factor as a mid-race wreck knocked his struggling No. 48 car from contention. Blaney, who will be BK’s teammate at Team Penske next season, sat on the pole but after leading the first 11 laps never again made it back to the front. But Hamlin and Elliott were factors all day, leaving the 2 Crew on the edge of their seats from start to finish.

Meanwhile, BK scuffled through a fairly uneventful day. The 2 Crew did their best to make adjustments on the Miller Lite Ford, which finished the first segment further back (in 18th) than they’d started the day (16th). A bump from the team’s adjustments after the first segment allowed Brad to move up a bit to 13th, but he still failed to score any stage points.

BK finally started to gain some ground late in the race, and that’s when things got wild. After leading 193 laps and nabbing 19 stage points at Phoenix, Hamlin had a leg up on Brad in points with under 50 laps to go. But with Brad running seventh, Hamlin and the other closest threat for the championship spot, Elliott, got together for some rough racing on the one-mile desert oval.

Elliott clearly had the stronger machine at this point, but Hamlin fought him tooth and nail, and the two eventually made contact that brushed Hamlin against the wall. Elliott moved by and it seemed as though Hamlin would survive, but a few laps later, his tire went down as a result of the earlier contact, Hamlin hit the wall hard and his day was done.

That left Elliott as the lone real threat to the spot. During the ensuing caution, crew chief Paul Wolfe elected to bring the Deuce down pit road for four fresh tires. As a result, Brad feel back outside of the Top 15, where he stayed for the rest of the day. Meanwhile, Elliott eventually grabbed the lead and appeared prime to grab his first career win and send the 2 Crew home empty-handed. But with less than 20 laps to go, Kenseth started to close the gap and he passed Elliott for the lead with 10 to go.

From there, the 2 Crew was in waiting mode, hoping to finish the day without a caution. Things got a little scary during that 10 lap period as the temps in the Miller Lite Ford started to spike, but Brad nursed it to the end and there was no yellow to give Elliott another chance as Kenseth cruised to the checkered flag.

So, despite a middling 16th place finish, Brad’s consistent performance throughout the playoffs locked him into the championship race on points alone and he will race Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick for the championship next weekend at Homestead-Miami.

“This feels a little bit like Christmas. Sometimes you need a little luck on your side. Today we had that. It wasn’t by any means where we wanted to run. We wanted to run up front and have a shot for the win. That wasn’t in the cards. We tried to run the smartest race we could and survive and it ended up paying off in the end.”

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship race is slated for this Sunday, November 19 from Homested-Miami Speedway. Coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET on NBC with the green flag for the final race of the 2017 season slated to wave at around 2:45 p.m. ET.

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Beginning at this weekend’s NASCAR race at Daytona International Speedway (DIS), fans and families of service men and women can visit CheckeredFlagFoundation.org to nominate a person that has sacrificed for our country. Nominees will have their name displayed on the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race at Phoenix on November 12, Veterans Day weekend across the United States. The special promotion will run through the MENCS regular-season finale at Richmond International Raceway on September 9.

The cost is $100 per nomination, which is fully tax-deductible, and all proceeds go to the Checkered Flag Foundation. In addition to being recognized on the race car, each nominee will receive a piece of the No. 2 Ford Fusion’s sheet metal that shows their name, along with a photo of the car and a letter of thanks from Keselowski. Fans can use the social media hashtag, #Tribute2Veterans, to highlight their nominee online as well.

“The Checkered Flag Foundation (CFF) celebrates veterans and they work to not only honor them but hopefully enrich their lives through various programs,” said Keselowski. “This unique fundraiser will go directly to those programs, while also providing a one-of-a-kind experience to have veterans virtually ride along with me at Phoenix as we try to earn a trip to the Championship 4 the following weekend at Homestead. Whether through the CFF or the Team Penske relationship with the Paralyzed Veterans of America, we are always looking for ways to give back to those that have helped defend our freedom. I think this is another great example of partners working together for a great cause.”

Keselowski is proud of his patriotism, and to make this holiday weekend even more special, the 2012 MENCS champion and last year’s Coke Zero 400 race winner has teamed up with DIS to provide 200 race tickets for Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 to local military members and their families. The group will be treated to a private meet and greet with Keselowski and DIS president Chip Wile prior to the race.

“Brad Keselowski has always been a big supporter of our Armed Forces,” said Wile. “It’s great to see last year’s Coke Zero 400 champion utilizing Daytona International Speedway and this July 4th race weekend as a platform to have local military personnel enjoy the excitement of NASCAR on the high banks.”

About Brad Keselowski’s Checkered Flag Foundation

Brad Keselowski’s Checkered Flag Foundation honors and assists those who have sacrificed greatly for our country. Since 2010, the foundation has supported over 50 organizations and individuals in order to help veterans and first responders during their road to recovery. There are numerous ways for those interested to become involved. Visit www.CheckeredFlagFoundation.org for details.

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Kes was solid all weekend and remained in striking distance throughout the 312 miles in the desert, but he never did have a shot at the lead and the win.

“We ran kind of right in that second to fifth range the whole day with the Alliance Truck Parts Ford,” Brad said. “We clawed away. I thought we might have had a shot at getting the win but the 18 car was just a touch better.”

Qualifying his Deuce sixth, it became evident early that the high line was preferred on restarts, something that helped Brad in the opening laps. By the end of the third lap, he advanced to P4, passing Jamie McMurray and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. On lap 11 he overtook fellow Team Penske driver Ryan Blaney for third, and Kyle Larson for second just 10 laps after, right before the first caution on lap 27 when Corey LaJoie wrecked in front of the race leaders.

Using the caution as an opportunity to check tire wear, crew chief Paul Wolfe called BK in to change all tires and fill the tank with Sunoco racing fuel. While servicing, a hangup on the left rear tire slowed the stop to 15.1 seconds, dropping the team back to sixth on the following lap 31 restart. Again using the high line, he passed Blaney and Earnhardt on the opening lap, and McMurray on the next circuit around for third where he remained until the end of Stage 1 on lap 75.

Choosing to pit for routine maintenance, Kes reported that the car was loose, but manageable over the long run. A 13.4-second pit stop allowed the team to hold P3 for the next restart at lap 83. Bogged down on the lower line, Brad lost a spot to sophomore season driver Chase Elliott, but slid in line P4 for 15 laps until passing polesitter and teammate Joey Logano for third. The next yellow flew on lap 117 when a burst tire caused LaJoie to make heavy contact with the wall. Pitting under caution, another slow left-rear tire change dropped the 2 Crew back to eighth. On top of that, radio issues began to plague the team as an open mic line came up in their channel loop.

Restarting on lap 122, BK used the high line to pass Kevin Harvick and Blaney to jump back to P6, before passing McMurray once more the next time by. On lap 140, he reported some positive news, that the radio woes have been fixed, and the annoyance of an open mic was out of the picture.

Riding in fifth to close out Stage 2, he visited the No. 2 pit crew for a full round of service while setting up for a lap 158 restart from P6. Before they even hit the backstretch dogleg, Brad rose two spots while passing McMurray and Jimmie Johnson. The 35-lap green-flag stretch was halted on lap 192 when Matt Kenseth’s tire blew out exiting Turn 4, forcing his No. 20 hard into the wall. Pitting for another set of tires, the ATP crew sent Kes out in fourth, ready to capitalize on the next restart.

When it came on lap 200, BK made good use of his short-run speed, passing Elliott and Larson for second behind race leader Kyle Busch. After a short four-lap stint, the field slowed down once more for the Gray Gaulding and David Ragan wreck. Staying out on track, BK was set for an inside line restart on lap 212, where he swapped a spot with Larson, taking it back the next time by.

Rolling around in second, the 2012 Champion began to report a vibration lap 239. Able to ride it out until the next caution on lap 257, a four-tire, fuel and air pressure adjustment stop allowed the team to analyze the tires, realizing that the vibration stemmed from a missing wheel weight.

Lined up third for the lap 261 restart, Keselowski lost a spot to Phoenix ace Harvick, and held the spot until Logano’s blown tire on lap 306. This time, Wolfe elected to swap only right-side tires, where the 8.0 second stop dropped them to sixth off pit road, but eighth on the restart behind Ryan Newman and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr who stayed out on track.

The final green flag of the afternoon in Overtime fashion saw Brad pass three cars to claim another Top 5 in fifth, but with just two miles of ground to make up eight spots, Brad ran out of room and was ultimately edged by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at the line to finish fifth, while Ryan Newman came away as the upset winner.

“We were all real close there,” Kes said. “Whoever got the track position was going to run away. The clean air was so important which was a bit frustrating. There was a lot of parity today and of course the crazy finish there at the end with the yellow coming out when it did and all the different strategies.”

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Though winless at the mile-long facility in the Arizona desert, Brad remains optimistic for the Camping World 500 on Sunday afternoon.

“Phoenix has been a pretty good track for us the last half dozen or so times we’ve run it. We’ve run up front, led laps, or at least been solid Top 5, solid Top 10s and we want to keep that streak going.”

In BK’s seven Phoenix spring races, he’s averaged a finishing position just outside the Top 10 (11.14), leaving with an end result outside the Top 15 only twice. His first full Cup season produced a P16 finish, while a blown left-rear tire last year relegated him to 29th, not indicative of the Top 10 performance they put on all day long. Amongst all 15 PIR races, Brad has managed to log 119 laps out front, and finished in the Top 10 just under half of those times.

Unlike the first three tracks visited by the Monster Energy Cup Series this year, where you start at PIR may indicate where you finish. As a fast, and relatively flat short track with a single groove, passing is at a premium, meaning speed on Friday can make Sunday that much better.

That could be good news for the 2 Crew. Dating back to the 2012 fall event, Kes has started his Deuce in the Top 20 for every Phoenix race, including a 2014 Pole and a second place start later that year. Qualifying at Phoenix is slated for 7:45 p.m. PT on FOX Sports 1.

“This is really an intense qualifying format and with the sun going down this track picks up a lot of speed,” he says. “It’s there.”

In his last visit to Phoenix, Team Penske unloaded a fast Miller Lite Ford, and while running in the Top 5 in the middle stage of the race, pit road issues plagued the rest of his race.

“The loss of track position ruined our day, which is unfortunate because I think we could’ve challenged for the win,” BK said.

Brad eventually settled for a 14th place finish while escaping carnage, teammate Joey Logano scored the win and punched his ticket to Homestead-Miami’s Round of 4, proving that Team Penske has the equipment to get it done in the desert.

For the third consecutive week, the No. 2 will hit the track with a different paint scheme, this time featuring the Alliance Truck Parts colors. With his win in Atlanta, Brad has reached Victory Lane with all of his current Penske sponsors (Miller Lite, Wurth, Detroit Genuine Parts, Autotrader)  – except for Alliance, something he hopes to change.

While the Michigan native hasn’t found his Arizona breakthrough in the Cup level just yet, he found a share of success in the XFINITY Series. The fall 2014 event appeared to be another display of Kyle Busch domination, but on the last lap, Brad swiped the win. Making a dive on Busch into the first turn, the No. 22 Mustang stuck and held the top spot for the rest of the lap.

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The No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion was in contention in the Can Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, but two pit road miscues by Brad set the team back on a tough day in the desert. Now, the 2 Crew looks forward to the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where they’ll still be vying for their fifth win of the year.

“I am disappointed in myself with how our race played out today,” Brad said. “We had a very fast Miller Lite Ford Fusion, but I missed the pit stall on two separate pit stops. The loss of track position ruined our day, which is unfortunate because I think we could’ve challenged for the win. We can still leave Homestead next weekend with the most wins in the series and that is our focus.”

Starting the race from P14, it didn’t take long to start gaining ground as Kyle Larson spun out from second on the first lap, allowing Brad to jump up to 12th. Restarting on lap six, he passed Carl Edwards to take the 11th position. On lap 18, Championship 4 lock Jimmie Johnson passed BK before making a charge of his own towards the front. Showing some long run speed, Kes passed Ryan Blaney on lap 25, and Jamie McMurray the next time by to crack the Top 10. On the 35th lap, he passed Kurt Busch for ninth. Ten laps later, he passed Matt Kenseth for eighth, and on lap 50, he passed race favorite Kevin Harvick for seventh. Kasey Kahne took a position back from the No. 2 dropping to P8 on lap 64, where he remained until the lap 83 crash between Ryan Newman and Kyle Larson.

As the yellow flew during green flag pit cycles, the 2 Crew caught a break as they had not yet visited pit road, and allowing them to take a few positions. Pitting for a fresh set of tires and fuel, it lined the Deuce up for a fifth-place restart on lap 91, where Greg Biffle took a spot away.

Nine laps into the run on lap 100, Brad took the spot back from Biffle and held it until the lap 132 debris caution. Pitting under crew chief Paul Wolfe’s direction for another set of Goodyear Eagles, and getting topped off on fuel, he gained a spot—and the preferred outside line for the restart on lap 140.

Using the outside line to his advantage, he passed Matt Kenseth to put himself in third, before Kenseth took the spot back on lap 164. Thirty laps later, Kahne once again passed BK, but both drivers passed Joey Logano, keeping Brad in fourth when the lap 211 debris caution flew. Complaining of a loose car in the entry of Phoenix’s treacherous turns, BK entered pit road, but he overshot his entry, skidding through the pit box. 

Lining up for the lap 218 restart from P12, green flag action didn’t even last for a lap as Austin Dillon went for a loop. Understanding their situation, Wolfe called BK back in to top off on fuel, hoping they could go the distance of the race. Restarting 10th on lap 229, he passed McMurray and Harvick on the opening lap, and held his ground there until a lap 256 caution for a wreck involving Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Newman.

Pitting once again for a splash of fuel, and another set of fresh rubber, Brad missed his pit stall again and restarted 15th behind a few drivers who stayed out on track. Five laps after taking the green, another debris caution flew with the No. 2 up to 13th, passing AJ Allmendinger and Ryan Blaney. Restarting on lap 269, he took a spot from Edwards for 12th, and McMurray for 11th, before Blaney took his position back.

Holding onto P12, it looked as if they were set up to finish there when Michael McDowell’s tire failed coming to the white flag lap.

Setting up for an Overtime finish, Brad wanted all the grip he could have for the upcoming chaos as he took their final set of fresh tires. When the restart happened, leaders Matt Kenseth and Alex Bowman got together, ending Kenseth’s second championship hopes.

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Brad piloted the No. 22 Discount Tire Ford for the final time this season, crossing ninth in the Ticket Galaxy 200 at Phoenix International Raceway. Kes was vying for his first NXS win of the year, but it wasn’t in the cards in the desert.

“The Discount Tire Ford Mustang was really strong at the start of the event, but we just couldn’t keep the handling where we needed it for the duration of the race,” he said.

Qualifying his No. 22 Discount Tire Ford in 11th, crew chief Greg Erwin decided to make an adjustment to the machine which NASCAR deemed to be unapproved, sending them to the end of the longest line at the start of the race.

Once the green flag dropped, his charge to the front began. Working his way up to P32 by the end of the second lap, he continued on to claim 25th by lap 10. By the time the first caution for debris flew, BK worked his way all the way up to 15th. Pitting for four tires and fuel, the 22 Crew’s quick work boosted them up five positions to 10th.

Restarting on lap 55, it didn’t take a whole lap for the next incident to occur when Alex Bowman made hard contact with the wall, allowing Brad to take Bowman’s lost spot, advancing to ninth. Going green on lap 64 from the narrow inside line, he instantly dropped to P10, before losing another spot to Blake Koch one lap later.

The long run longevity of the Double Deuce kicked in as he reclaimed the spot from Koch on lap 73, as well as taking ninth from Aric Almirola on lap 77, and eighth from Ricky Stenhouse Jr. nine laps later. Another yellow came out when Jeff Green hit the wall on lap 93, allowing Erwin to call Brad back in for routine servicing, where the 22 Crew gained another two positions in the pits.

Setting up for a lap 100 restart from P6, series regular Darrell Wallace Jr. passed the No. 22 on the start, before Ray Black Jr. wrecked and brought out another yellow on lap 105. Restarting from seventh on lap 113, fellow Ford driver Ryan Reed passed BK as well, relegating him to eighth. Five laps later, Stenhouse passed the Michigan native, dropping another spot back to ninth. The run ensued for 20 laps when Brendan Gaughan’s car made heavy contact with the wall, ultimately ending his championship bid. Visiting pit road for the final time of the evening, Erwin decided to spice up his call by electing to only replace right side tires, and fill the Mustang with just enough fuel to make the distance.

The two-tire call gained Keselowski some valuable track position, shooting the team up to fourth on a lap 147 restart. Following the trend of previous restarts, Brad continued to give up a position, this time to Reed, before a red flag was thrown on the next lap. As Koch attempted to pass BK on the frontstretch, he chopped off Wallace’s No. 6, slamming it straight into the inside wall. The wreck collected a handful of other drivers, scattering the track with debris.

After the red flag was lifted, they resumed racing on lap 153, where Koch completed the pass on Brad, falling back to sixth. By the end of the Ticket Galaxy 200, he also lost ground to Austin Dillon, Stenhouse, and Ty Dillon to come home in ninth.

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The No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion driver is No. 10 in the point standings, second among drivers out of championship contention. He boasts four wins and 16 Top 5s on the season, giving him a solid shot at his two remaining goals: lead the series in wins and finish fifth in points.

“It does matter to me,” Brad said of the final standings. “I don’t agree with that claim that points position doesn’t matter at all.”

In his 14 Phoenix races, Kes is yet to visit Victory Lane, but he’s been right there, finishing in the Top 5 four times. His most memorable trip to PIR came in the fall of 2012 in the thick of a championship battle with Jimmie Johnson. Johnson, who had a tire let go on the exit of turn four, made hard contact with the frontstretch wall. Entering the race in a points deficit, the No. 48’s misfortune became a blessing for the No.2 team as they soon after took the championship points lead.

While Johnson’s day was over, it didn’t mean BK was in the clear either — he still needed to finish the race in a decent position. After slight contact from a huge accident on the final lap, he was able to leave the desert with a sixth-place finish and a lead that carried him through Homestead.

That came as part of an eight-race streak of finishes of 11th or better for the No. 2 Miller Lite team.

“Phoenix has been a pretty good track for us the last half dozen or so times we’ve run it,” he said. “We’ve run up front, led laps, or at least been solid Top 5, solid Top 10s and we want to keep that streak going.”

The streak ended this spring in Phoenix, but the 2 Crew’s streak of strength in the desert didn’t. Brad looked bound for a Top 10 in his most recent trip to Phoenix. However, a blown left-rear tire bit the Yellow Deuce, leaving with a 29th-place finish.

“The Alliance Truck Parts Fusion was probably about a 10th place car, but you never know how things would have played out without the tire issue,” he said on the day.

At the Cup circuit’s most recent short track in Martinsville, Brad’s second-place finish, and outstanding long-run speed surely provides a boost of confidence. Matched with a pair of fourth-place finishes in the two most recent mile-long tracks at New Hampshire and Dover, the Team Penske’s short-track program is among the best in the Cup field.

While six drivers will be battling for the final two spots in next week’s Championship Round at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Brad will be racing for a win and points at PIR. The Can-Am 500 is slated to take the green flag on Sunday, Nov. 13, at 2:30 p.m. ET live on NBC, with grid setting qualifications taking place on Friday, Nov. 11 at 6:45 p.m. ET, live on NBC Sports Network.

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