Brad Keselowski didn’t feel bad for himself, nor was he devastated after crashing out at Talladega Superspeedway Sunday.
Keselowski started fifth and won Stage 2, but on lap 161 was pushing Carson Hocevar down the front stretch. A bump sent Hocevar spinning down into Austin Dillon and Ty Gibbs and sending Keselowski’s Ford nose first into the outside wall.
“It was just one of those Talladega pushing and shoving deals. I just gave a really light push to the 42 car and it turned around on him, so unfortunate for us. We were able to win the second stage and were in a pretty good position there. It sucks. It sucks for everybody. I hate it for him. I hate it for us, but it is what it is.”
Keselowski said he felt for Hocevar.
“I just feel bad for Carson,” Keselowski said. “I gave him a little push and it just took off on him. It wadded up a bunch of cars and it’s unfortunate, but we were having a good day with our Solomon Plumbing Ford. We were leading laps and won the second stage. I got shuffled there a few laps earlier and were trying to claw back and it all just gathered up.”
Keselowski became the second of two Playoff drivers to be scored with a DNF, 32nd and said he felt his car get airborne before coming to rest.
“It was one of those Talladega deals,” he said. “We had a really, really good Ford Mustang and we were up front for a while. We led the second stage and won the second stage, so that felt good. We got shuffled there a few laps before the incident and was trying to claw our way back in the third lane. The 42 pulled up in front of me and I just gave him a push and it kind of instantly spun out on him. It’s unfortunate, but part of the deal.”
He said he didn’t think he was pushing too hard.
“I don’t know about that,” he said. “I guess anytime you spin somebody out you pushed him too hard, but you just don’t know until you push somebody how good their car is going to be, compared to everybody else I was pushing I would say no.”
With the finish Keselowski leaves Talladega with the final Playoff spot with Tyler Reddick just 2 points behind, a situation Keselowski admits is, “certainly not ideal.”
“I’m glad we were able to win the stage,” he said. “That certainly helps our points at least a little, but not as much as if we were able to finish the race out.”
And he admits that he isn’t too distraught moving forward.
“It’s not ideal, but I’m not devastated,” Keselowski said. “I’d be devastated if we ran terrible and wrecked, but we ran good and I’m proud of our team for putting the effort we need to run up front and lead laps and win the second stage. It just didn’t come together at the end.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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