Penske Racing recently announced that they would make the move from Dodge to Ford for the 2013 season, which left many people thinking they would be the proverbial "lame duck" team
this season.
But Brad Keselowki proved Sunday afternoon in Bristol that nothing could be further from the truth when he pulled his No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge into victory lane for the second time in a row at the Bristol Motor Speedway.
Saturday night, Keselowski took to Twitter telling fans he had the best car he's ever had at the concrete half mile bullring. Very few fans believed him, which no doubt only fueled the Michigan native to prove them wrong.
Early on, the race appeared to belong to Keselowski's teammate A.J. Allmendiger. His No. 22 started second and he and pole winner Greg Biffle appeared to be the class of the field. But a caution on lap 24 shook up the race.
Regan Smith and Kasey Kahne were battling hard and when the drivers came off turn four, Kahne's spotter cleared him high. But Smith had a head of steam and clipped Kahne's No. 5 and put him in the wall after Kahne cut him off. The No. 5 Chevy slid down the track and then back up the banking in turn one, collecting contenders Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Marcos Ambrose.
Brian Vickers later took the lead and dominated the race with his teammate Martin Truex, Jr. Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt, Jr were also strong contenders. But as the race progressed, Matt Kenseth and Keselowski emerged as the two strongest cars.
Some controversy erupted when Kenseth twice beat the leader, Keselwoski, to the start/finish line, which can't happen. The leader must always get to the line first. But Nascar ruled that Kenseth was in the right because Brad didn't mash the gas in the designated restart area.
Some more trouble happened late in the race when Dale Junior and Jeff Gordon made some slight contact. While the bump was slight, it was enough for Junior's tailpipes to cut down Gordon's left rear tire, sending him backwards into the wall. Junior later took full responsibility for the incident and apologized profusely for wrecking his teammate, albeit unintentionally.
In the closing laps, Kenseth could keep up with Keselowski, but he couldn't catch him. The "Blue Deuce" pulled into victory lane for the second time at Bristol after winning the track's fall race last season.
So after winning back-to-back races at Bristol, Keselowski and his team will try and win back to back races by winning next week's race at Auto Club Speedway in Southern California. But it won't be easy, as the 2 mile SoCal oval is usually dominated by Roush-Fenway Racing. With four different manufacturers and drivers winning the season's first four races, it will be interesting if this parity will continue Sunday afternoon.
this season.
But Brad Keselowki proved Sunday afternoon in Bristol that nothing could be further from the truth when he pulled his No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge into victory lane for the second time in a row at the Bristol Motor Speedway.
Saturday night, Keselowski took to Twitter telling fans he had the best car he's ever had at the concrete half mile bullring. Very few fans believed him, which no doubt only fueled the Michigan native to prove them wrong.
Early on, the race appeared to belong to Keselowski's teammate A.J. Allmendiger. His No. 22 started second and he and pole winner Greg Biffle appeared to be the class of the field. But a caution on lap 24 shook up the race.
Regan Smith and Kasey Kahne were battling hard and when the drivers came off turn four, Kahne's spotter cleared him high. But Smith had a head of steam and clipped Kahne's No. 5 and put him in the wall after Kahne cut him off. The No. 5 Chevy slid down the track and then back up the banking in turn one, collecting contenders Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch and Marcos Ambrose.
Brian Vickers later took the lead and dominated the race with his teammate Martin Truex, Jr. Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt, Jr were also strong contenders. But as the race progressed, Matt Kenseth and Keselowski emerged as the two strongest cars.
Some controversy erupted when Kenseth twice beat the leader, Keselwoski, to the start/finish line, which can't happen. The leader must always get to the line first. But Nascar ruled that Kenseth was in the right because Brad didn't mash the gas in the designated restart area.
Some more trouble happened late in the race when Dale Junior and Jeff Gordon made some slight contact. While the bump was slight, it was enough for Junior's tailpipes to cut down Gordon's left rear tire, sending him backwards into the wall. Junior later took full responsibility for the incident and apologized profusely for wrecking his teammate, albeit unintentionally.
In the closing laps, Kenseth could keep up with Keselowski, but he couldn't catch him. The "Blue Deuce" pulled into victory lane for the second time at Bristol after winning the track's fall race last season.
So after winning back-to-back races at Bristol, Keselowski and his team will try and win back to back races by winning next week's race at Auto Club Speedway in Southern California. But it won't be easy, as the 2 mile SoCal oval is usually dominated by Roush-Fenway Racing. With four different manufacturers and drivers winning the season's first four races, it will be interesting if this parity will continue Sunday afternoon.
No comments:
Post a Comment