(Photo: Trish McCormack | The Podium Finish)
HAMPTON, Ga. — Brad Keselowski and his No. 6 RFK Racing team decided to surrender the lead to get fuel after winning Stage 2 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, a move that the team ultimately had to make as Keselowski instead placed sixth in the rain-shortened Quaker State 400 available at Walmart.
Keselowski, who hoped to win his first race in two seasons, was in a position to get the victory had impending weather hit the racetrack sooner. He led the final 14 laps of Stage 2 soon after the race became official at Lap 130. The storm cell inched closer to AMS, but Keselowski only had 12-14 laps of fuel remaining, a reserve that likely wouldn’t last until a weather-related caution. He told crew chief Matt McCall that he didn’t envy the decision he had to make.
McCall ultimately called Keselowski down pit road during the Lap 160 stage caution and the next three cars followed him. A caution for an incident came out on Lap 178 and the race never got going again. The rain finally hit and NASCAR called the race, handing William Byron his fourth victory of the season.
Keselowski got up to sixth from mid-pack in 13 green flag laps before the race ended. The result is bittersweet for the 39-year-old from Rochester Hills, Michigan.
(Photo: Trish McCormack | The Podium Finish)
“It was a good day. We were right where we needed to be, but didn’t get the breaks we needed,” Keselowski said. “We had 12-14 laps left of fuel and that was not enough and we ended up running 15 laps or so. I think we made the right call, we just needed the rain to be 10 minutes earlier or 10 minutes later.
“It’s just part of the deal. You win races you shouldn’t and you lose ones you probably should win and you have to take the punches as they come.”
Keselowski nearly won the spring race at Atlanta, leading 47 laps before former teammate Joey Logano passed him on the final lap to steal a victory. He wound up finishing second.
But Keselowski’s near-win on Sunday at Atlanta ended up as his seventh top 10 in 19 races, a benchmark from last season that he’s already surpassed. Keselowski had just six in the entirety of 2022.
With seven races remaining in the regular season, Keselowski sits 12th in points and third among drivers who haven’t won a race. Teammate Chris Buescher is two points above him in 11th.
The RFK Racing duo heads to New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday, July 16 for the Crayon 301. The race is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Christopher Bell is the defending winner.
