bigbadbrother
09-14-2014, 11:59 PM
Tom Jensen
Brad Keselowski made a daring and dramatic late-race pass to win Sunday's MyAFib.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway and draw first blood in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
Keselowski, who began his 2012 championship run with a victory here, split Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick with 16 laps to go and drove to a decisive victory. It was his second consecutive race win, his series-high fifth of the year and eighth of the season in 27 races for Team Penske.
Jeff Gordon finished second in his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet ahead of Larson's Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Chevrolet, Keselowski's teammate Joey Logano and Harvick in a Stewart-Haas Racing Chevy.
Keselowski's victory means he automatically advances to the Contender Round of the Chase, which will begin with the fourth race of the Chase.
"The next two weeks are going to be a lot of fun, knowing that we don't have to worry too much and we're going to move up to the -- what is it, the Contender Round that's next?" Keselowski said.
Asked what it means to be locked in to the next round, Keselowski said, "It means we're going to drink a lot more beer tonight. We're going to have fun with it."
Second-place finisher Gordon waged a tooth-and-nail battle at the end with rookie Larson for second place and was pleased to start his Chase on a high note. "I'm really proud of Kyle Larson," said Gordon. "Man, what a great effort and such a young talent. I really wanted to see him win that race because I like him, but I didn't want see those other guys win it, either."
It was a spirited and intense race and a great start to NASCAR's playoff round, with hard racing for virtually the entire 400 miles.
Kyle Busch, fresh off his victory in Saturday night's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race here, started from the pole, flanked by Ryan Newman.
The race stayed green until Lap 66, roughly one-quarter distance, when a caution came out for debris in Turn 2. Busch retook the lead on pit road by virtue of a two-tire pit stop.
VIDEO: Troubles on pit road at Chicagoland Speedway
After the restart, a sensational four-way battle for the lead broke out among Busch, Larson, Keselowski and Gordon, with Gordon racing hard to get past Busch on Lap 88.
Following another caution, Jamie McMurray led briefly, until Keselowski got him on Lap 107, with Gordon moving back to second.
At the halfway point, Lap 134, Keselowski led Gordon by 2.5 seconds, with Harvick closing fast in third ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch. Harvick moved into the second nine laps later.
After a round of green-flag pit stops, Harvick took his first lead of the day on Lap 152.
A caution for debris on Lap 182 sent the field down pit road. Keselowski surrendered second place when he had to make a second stop for a suspected loose wheel. That dropped the 2012 champion from second to 16th.
At the Lap 200 mark, Harvick led by 1.336 seconds, as Kyle Larson took second from Gordon.
Almost immediately, Larson began to cut into Harvick's lead, while further back, Keselowski worked his way all the up to eighth by Lap 215.
By Lap 220, Larson caught Harvick, and the rookie muscled past him on Lap 228 to assume the point for the first time.
Two laps later, Carl Edwards had a flat to bring out a caution and at the same time, Aric Almirola lost a motor after a strong run that saw him get into the top five.
The green flag flew on Lap 238, with Larson leading Harvick.
Clint Bowyer pancaked the wall on Lap 245 to send the track yellow once again.
When the green came out, Larson and Harvick waged a tremendous fight for the lead, but Keselowski split the two with 16 laps to go in what would prove to be the race-winning pass. Asked how he made the move, Keselowski said, "I'm not really sure. I'm going to have to watch the replay to figure it out."
But it wasn't over yet.
NASCAR's power couple, Danica Patrick and Rick Stenhouse Jr. crashed to bring out another caution with 10 laps to go.
That set up a final shootout for the victory, with Keselowski driving to victory, as Gordon and Larson fought hard for second, the veteran eventually winning the battle. Gordon finally secured the spot when Larson bounced off the wall near the end of the race.
"I had a lot of fun ripping the wall," said Larson of his penchant to run the high line. "I ran inches of it the whole race and finally got into it there battling Jeff. … For a backup car that was amazing."
Clearly, though, the day belonged to Keselowski.
"Man, that was a crazy day," he said. "I'm not even sure I know what really happened."
MyAFibStory.com 400
Sep 14, 2014 | Chicagoland Speedway - Joliet, Illinois | 400.5 mi
Pos Driver Car # Make Started Laps Led Points Driver Rating
1 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 25 267 62 47 123.2
2 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 8 267 26 43 129.5
3 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 10 267 20 42 110.1
4 Joey Logano 22 Ford 28 267 0 40 94.6
5 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 12 267 79 41 127.5
6 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 24 267 0 38 93.9
7 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 1 267 46 38 111.8
8 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 14 267 0 36 89.1
9 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 11 267 32 36 113.5
10 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 5 267 0 34 98.9
11 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 13 267 0 33 104.9
12 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 7 267 0 32 101.6
13 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 19 267 0 31 77.4
14 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 27 267 0 30 69.5
15 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 2 267 0 29 91.7
16 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 15 267 0 28 77.0
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 4 267 0 27 81.5
18 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 22 267 0 26 67.1
19 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 18 267 0 25 69.2
20 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 3 266 0 24 75.4
21 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 9 266 0 23 68.3
22 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 17 265 0 22 63.2
23 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 20 265 0 21 59.8
24 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 16 265 0 20 70.3
25 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 21 265 0 19 57.2
26 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 29 264 0 18 52.1
27 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 26 264 0 17 54.0
28 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 38 263 0 0 41.7
29 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 36 262 0 15 47.0
30 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 33 262 0 14 47.7
31 David Ragan 34 Ford 39 262 0 13 40.1
32 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 32 262 0 12 40.0
33 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 34 262 0 11 40.6
34 David Gilliland 38 Ford 30 261 0 10 34.3
35 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 37 261 0 9 42.9
36 Joe Nemechek 66 Toyota 41 258 0 0 29.5
37 Joey Gase 32 Ford 43 257 0 0 27.4
38 Travis Kvapil 33 Chevrolet 42 256 0 6 30.0
39 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 6 244 0 5 73.5
40 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 35 233 0 4 47.1
41 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 23 230 2 4 66.2
42 Ryan Truex 83 Toyota 31 184 0 2 30.4
43 Mike Bliss 37 Chevrolet 40 13 0 0 28.3
2014 MyAFibStory.com 400 Stats
Scheduled Laps: 267
Total Laps: 267
Distance: 400.5 miles
Lead Changes: 27
Brad Keselowski made a daring and dramatic late-race pass to win Sunday's MyAFib.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway and draw first blood in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
Keselowski, who began his 2012 championship run with a victory here, split Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick with 16 laps to go and drove to a decisive victory. It was his second consecutive race win, his series-high fifth of the year and eighth of the season in 27 races for Team Penske.
Jeff Gordon finished second in his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet ahead of Larson's Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Chevrolet, Keselowski's teammate Joey Logano and Harvick in a Stewart-Haas Racing Chevy.
Keselowski's victory means he automatically advances to the Contender Round of the Chase, which will begin with the fourth race of the Chase.
"The next two weeks are going to be a lot of fun, knowing that we don't have to worry too much and we're going to move up to the -- what is it, the Contender Round that's next?" Keselowski said.
Asked what it means to be locked in to the next round, Keselowski said, "It means we're going to drink a lot more beer tonight. We're going to have fun with it."
Second-place finisher Gordon waged a tooth-and-nail battle at the end with rookie Larson for second place and was pleased to start his Chase on a high note. "I'm really proud of Kyle Larson," said Gordon. "Man, what a great effort and such a young talent. I really wanted to see him win that race because I like him, but I didn't want see those other guys win it, either."
It was a spirited and intense race and a great start to NASCAR's playoff round, with hard racing for virtually the entire 400 miles.
Kyle Busch, fresh off his victory in Saturday night's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race here, started from the pole, flanked by Ryan Newman.
The race stayed green until Lap 66, roughly one-quarter distance, when a caution came out for debris in Turn 2. Busch retook the lead on pit road by virtue of a two-tire pit stop.
VIDEO: Troubles on pit road at Chicagoland Speedway
After the restart, a sensational four-way battle for the lead broke out among Busch, Larson, Keselowski and Gordon, with Gordon racing hard to get past Busch on Lap 88.
Following another caution, Jamie McMurray led briefly, until Keselowski got him on Lap 107, with Gordon moving back to second.
At the halfway point, Lap 134, Keselowski led Gordon by 2.5 seconds, with Harvick closing fast in third ahead of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch. Harvick moved into the second nine laps later.
After a round of green-flag pit stops, Harvick took his first lead of the day on Lap 152.
A caution for debris on Lap 182 sent the field down pit road. Keselowski surrendered second place when he had to make a second stop for a suspected loose wheel. That dropped the 2012 champion from second to 16th.
At the Lap 200 mark, Harvick led by 1.336 seconds, as Kyle Larson took second from Gordon.
Almost immediately, Larson began to cut into Harvick's lead, while further back, Keselowski worked his way all the up to eighth by Lap 215.
By Lap 220, Larson caught Harvick, and the rookie muscled past him on Lap 228 to assume the point for the first time.
Two laps later, Carl Edwards had a flat to bring out a caution and at the same time, Aric Almirola lost a motor after a strong run that saw him get into the top five.
The green flag flew on Lap 238, with Larson leading Harvick.
Clint Bowyer pancaked the wall on Lap 245 to send the track yellow once again.
When the green came out, Larson and Harvick waged a tremendous fight for the lead, but Keselowski split the two with 16 laps to go in what would prove to be the race-winning pass. Asked how he made the move, Keselowski said, "I'm not really sure. I'm going to have to watch the replay to figure it out."
But it wasn't over yet.
NASCAR's power couple, Danica Patrick and Rick Stenhouse Jr. crashed to bring out another caution with 10 laps to go.
That set up a final shootout for the victory, with Keselowski driving to victory, as Gordon and Larson fought hard for second, the veteran eventually winning the battle. Gordon finally secured the spot when Larson bounced off the wall near the end of the race.
"I had a lot of fun ripping the wall," said Larson of his penchant to run the high line. "I ran inches of it the whole race and finally got into it there battling Jeff. … For a backup car that was amazing."
Clearly, though, the day belonged to Keselowski.
"Man, that was a crazy day," he said. "I'm not even sure I know what really happened."
MyAFibStory.com 400
Sep 14, 2014 | Chicagoland Speedway - Joliet, Illinois | 400.5 mi
Pos Driver Car # Make Started Laps Led Points Driver Rating
1 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 25 267 62 47 123.2
2 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 8 267 26 43 129.5
3 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 10 267 20 42 110.1
4 Joey Logano 22 Ford 28 267 0 40 94.6
5 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 12 267 79 41 127.5
6 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 24 267 0 38 93.9
7 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 1 267 46 38 111.8
8 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 14 267 0 36 89.1
9 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 11 267 32 36 113.5
10 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 5 267 0 34 98.9
11 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 13 267 0 33 104.9
12 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 7 267 0 32 101.6
13 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 19 267 0 31 77.4
14 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 27 267 0 30 69.5
15 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 2 267 0 29 91.7
16 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 15 267 0 28 77.0
17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 4 267 0 27 81.5
18 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 22 267 0 26 67.1
19 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 18 267 0 25 69.2
20 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 3 266 0 24 75.4
21 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 9 266 0 23 68.3
22 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 17 265 0 22 63.2
23 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 20 265 0 21 59.8
24 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 16 265 0 20 70.3
25 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 21 265 0 19 57.2
26 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 29 264 0 18 52.1
27 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 26 264 0 17 54.0
28 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 38 263 0 0 41.7
29 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 36 262 0 15 47.0
30 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 33 262 0 14 47.7
31 David Ragan 34 Ford 39 262 0 13 40.1
32 Michael McDowell 95 Ford 32 262 0 12 40.0
33 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 34 262 0 11 40.6
34 David Gilliland 38 Ford 30 261 0 10 34.3
35 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 37 261 0 9 42.9
36 Joe Nemechek 66 Toyota 41 258 0 0 29.5
37 Joey Gase 32 Ford 43 257 0 0 27.4
38 Travis Kvapil 33 Chevrolet 42 256 0 6 30.0
39 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 6 244 0 5 73.5
40 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 35 233 0 4 47.1
41 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 23 230 2 4 66.2
42 Ryan Truex 83 Toyota 31 184 0 2 30.4
43 Mike Bliss 37 Chevrolet 40 13 0 0 28.3
2014 MyAFibStory.com 400 Stats
Scheduled Laps: 267
Total Laps: 267
Distance: 400.5 miles
Lead Changes: 27