Keselowski wins NASCAR playoff opener in Vegas
LAS VEGAS — Brad Keselowski nailed the final restart and roared away from the field in the scorching Vegas heat.
With another huge performance in his lateseason surge, Keselowski finished up front again — and he’s got NASCAR’s Big Three drivers looking over their shoulders.
Keselowski raced to his third consecutive Cup series victory Sunday, opening the playoffs by persevering through a wreck-filled afternoon and taking charge of overtime.
He also secured team owner Roger Penske’s 500th victory across all competitions with his resourceful performance amid 99-degree conditions and constant stop-and-start late drama of a race featuring 12 cautions and several wrecks.
“I didn’t think it was ever going to end,” Keselowski said after his 27th career victory and third in Las Vegas. “I was worried about running out of gas there at the end.”
Keselowski had plenty of worries with just two laps to go while he sat in his stationary car and waited for the cleanup of Michael McDowell’s wreck with Kurt Busch. But after the red-flag stop ended, nobody could keep up with Keselowski’s Team Penske Ford.
The victory extended an extraordinary late-season run for Keselowski, who won at Darlington and the Brickyard in consecutive weeks before Vegas. Keselowski credited his pit crew’s efficiency for the latest win in his improbable surge, which has added some intrigue to a NASCAR season largely dominated by the Big Three of Truex, Harvick and Kyle Busch.
“We have not been the best car the last three weeks,” Keselowski said. “We put everything together when it counted, and we kind of stole it today. Same