Brad Keselowski scared of NASCAR Chase Contender Round?
2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup winner Brad Keselowski is the No. 1 seed in the NASCAR rankings for the chase and he looks to be a strong favorite to win the whole thing. But, maybe Keselowski isn’t so sure.
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The NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup is done in four sections. First is the challenger round, which contains three total races from Chicagoland Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Dover International Speedway. From there, the field of 16 is reduced to 12 as they move on to the contender round, a round of three races that Keselowski isn’t so sure about.
The races take place at Kansas Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway and Keselowski told Fox Sports on Thursday’s Chase Media Day in Chicago that he’s scared of that round of three races.
“The contender bracket, that one scares the crap out of me,” Keselowski said. “Kansas and Talladega are just two tracks where, like I said, they have been wreck-fests the last few years and the only way you can really feel comfortable with that bracket is if you go to Charlotte and win the race. I think that bracket will break some hearts and that is the most concerning thing to us.”
After the contender round is the eliminator round, another three race stretch where just eight racers are competing to move on again. These races will take place at Martinsville Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and Phoenix International Raceway. The final race, the Ford EcoBoost 400, will have just four teams competing for the cup and it will take place at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
The Michigan native Keselowski will have his work cut out for him in the Chase despite leading with 2,012 points. He’s had four wins and 11 top-fives in 26 starts, but he’ll have Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson and 12 other drivers right on his back bumper.