bigbadbrother
09-07-2014, 08:05 AM
Richmond, Va. —
Brad Keselowski crushed the field to score a dominating victory in Saturday night's Federated Auto Parts 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway.
Keselowski led 383 of 400 laps to win easily ahead of Jeff Gordon in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and the No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota of Clint Bowyer. Jamie McMurray and Kevin Harvick completed the top five.
The victory was the fourth of the season and 14th of his career for Keselowski, who will enter the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup as the No. 1 seed. Keselowski took his third and final lead of the night on Lap 127 and never trailed again in a spectacular show of strength for his Team Penske No. 2 Ford.
It was also the 400th overall motorsports race victory for team owner Roger Penske, including 85 in the Sprint Cup Series.
Meanwhile, Ryan Newman and Greg Biffle secured the final two spots in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
But the night clearly belonged to Keselowski.
"What a night," said the 2012 Sprint Cup champion. "Part of me, when I pulled into Victory Lane I pinched myself once to make sure I wasn't dreaming. These are nights you don't forget as a driver and you live for."
Keselowski said he and his team, led by crew chief Paul Wolfe, are ready to do battle for a second championship.
Exhausted Jimmie Johnson transported to the infield care center after race at RIR
"I couldn't ask for a better way to enter the Chase than to win and take the first seed," said Keselowski. "We're ready. We want to run for another Cup. We really feel like this team has it. Team Penske is really clicking."
Second-place finisher Gordon insisted he and his Team Hendrick squad are ready for the championship battle, too.
"This is the team I want to go to battle with for the next 10 weeks, and it's because of how in sync and the chemistry that we have," said Gordon. "It's a team that really believes in one another, and you can't ask for more than that. Well, fast race cars, and we have that, too."
It was Keselowski's night from the beginning, as he started from the pole, flanked by Gordon, with the Penske Ford blazing fast from the get-go.
Harvick, who also had been fast all weekend running the high line, went around Keselowski and into the lead for the first time on Lap 43.
Because of rain earlier in the day, NASCAR scheduled a competition caution at Lap 50. During the yellow-flag period, Keselowski reclaimed the lead on pit road ahead of Clint Bowyer, Harvick and Gordon.
It took all the way until Lap 120 for Harvick to catch and pass Keselowski, with Bowyer still a close third.
Five laps later, debris on the backstretch brought the yellow flag out for a second time. Again the leaders pitted, and again Keselowski came out first, ahead of Gordon and Harvick. It was the eighth time in two races that Harvick lost the lead on pit road. Keselowski would never trail again for the rest of the race.
At the halfway point, Keselowski led Gordon by 2.969 seconds, having led 183 of the first 200 laps. Harvick was third.
Keselowski led the next 100 laps, too, leading by 1.576 seconds over Bowyer, Gordon and Harvick at the 300-lap mark.
On Lap 331, a caution came out because of a man attempting to climb the fence in Turn 4. The leaders all pitted, with Keselowski narrowly winning the race off pit road over Gordon and Bowyer.
The race restarted on Lap 337, Keselowski keeping Gordon at bay for the lead. And that's the way they finished as the Penske Blanco Deuce proved unstoppable on the night.
Team owner Penske understandably was pleased, but he sounded a cautionary note, too.
"We take this in stride," said Penske. "Obviously being the top seed is a tremendous effort for the team and certainly puts us in a great place. But we're not blind. We know there's plenty of guys out there that (can) beat us, they're going to want to. What we have to do is stay on course."
Federated Auto Parts 400
Sep 6, 2014 | Richmond International Raceway - Richmond, Virginia | 300.0 mi
Pos Driver Car # Make Started Laps Led Points Driver Rating
1 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 1 400 383 48 149.8
2 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 2 400 0 42 123.3
3 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 6 400 0 41 115.5
4 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 15 400 0 40 111.6
5 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 4 400 17 40 118.0
6 Joey Logano 22 Ford 5 400 0 38 106.0
7 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 9 400 0 37 103.0
8 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 3 400 0 36 98.7
9 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 12 400 0 35 101.5
10 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 26 400 0 34 79.1
11 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 8 400 0 33 92.0
12 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 24 400 0 32 90.1
13 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 18 400 0 31 82.5
14 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 20 400 0 30 85.9
15 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 19 400 0 29 84.9
16 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 13 400 0 28 75.5
17 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 21 399 0 27 69.9
18 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 14 399 0 26 69.9
19 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 17 398 0 25 75.0
20 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 28 398 0 24 66.2
21 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 11 398 0 23 81.4
22 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 10 396 0 22 69.7
23 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 23 396 0 21 62.3
24 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 32 396 0 20 58.6
25 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 29 396 0 19 53.4
26 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 7 396 0 18 63.0
27 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 33 395 0 17 51.0
28 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 27 395 0 16 55.1
29 David Gilliland 38 Ford 30 395 0 15 54.1
30 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 35 394 0 14 45.4
31 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 22 394 0 13 49.0
32 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 36 394 0 12 39.8
33 David Ragan 34 Ford 42 394 0 11 41.4
34 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 34 394 0 0 42.5
35 Mike Bliss 37 Chevrolet 39 394 0 0 35.7
36 David Stremme 90 Chevrolet 31 392 0 8 39.1
37 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 40 392 0 7 40.8
38 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 25 391 0 6 32.8
39 Travis Kvapil 32 Ford 37 391 0 5 29.1
40 Joe Nemechek 66 Toyota 41 388 0 0 26.5
41 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 16 330 0 3 72.0
42 Ryan Truex 83 Toyota 43 313 0 2 27.7
43 J.J. Yeley 93 Toyota 38 31 0 0 26.0
2014 Federated Auto Parts 400 Stats
Scheduled Laps: 400
Total Laps: 400
Distance: 300.0 miles
Lead Changes: 8
Brad Keselowski crushed the field to score a dominating victory in Saturday night's Federated Auto Parts 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway.
Keselowski led 383 of 400 laps to win easily ahead of Jeff Gordon in the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and the No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota of Clint Bowyer. Jamie McMurray and Kevin Harvick completed the top five.
The victory was the fourth of the season and 14th of his career for Keselowski, who will enter the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup as the No. 1 seed. Keselowski took his third and final lead of the night on Lap 127 and never trailed again in a spectacular show of strength for his Team Penske No. 2 Ford.
It was also the 400th overall motorsports race victory for team owner Roger Penske, including 85 in the Sprint Cup Series.
Meanwhile, Ryan Newman and Greg Biffle secured the final two spots in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
But the night clearly belonged to Keselowski.
"What a night," said the 2012 Sprint Cup champion. "Part of me, when I pulled into Victory Lane I pinched myself once to make sure I wasn't dreaming. These are nights you don't forget as a driver and you live for."
Keselowski said he and his team, led by crew chief Paul Wolfe, are ready to do battle for a second championship.
Exhausted Jimmie Johnson transported to the infield care center after race at RIR
"I couldn't ask for a better way to enter the Chase than to win and take the first seed," said Keselowski. "We're ready. We want to run for another Cup. We really feel like this team has it. Team Penske is really clicking."
Second-place finisher Gordon insisted he and his Team Hendrick squad are ready for the championship battle, too.
"This is the team I want to go to battle with for the next 10 weeks, and it's because of how in sync and the chemistry that we have," said Gordon. "It's a team that really believes in one another, and you can't ask for more than that. Well, fast race cars, and we have that, too."
It was Keselowski's night from the beginning, as he started from the pole, flanked by Gordon, with the Penske Ford blazing fast from the get-go.
Harvick, who also had been fast all weekend running the high line, went around Keselowski and into the lead for the first time on Lap 43.
Because of rain earlier in the day, NASCAR scheduled a competition caution at Lap 50. During the yellow-flag period, Keselowski reclaimed the lead on pit road ahead of Clint Bowyer, Harvick and Gordon.
It took all the way until Lap 120 for Harvick to catch and pass Keselowski, with Bowyer still a close third.
Five laps later, debris on the backstretch brought the yellow flag out for a second time. Again the leaders pitted, and again Keselowski came out first, ahead of Gordon and Harvick. It was the eighth time in two races that Harvick lost the lead on pit road. Keselowski would never trail again for the rest of the race.
At the halfway point, Keselowski led Gordon by 2.969 seconds, having led 183 of the first 200 laps. Harvick was third.
Keselowski led the next 100 laps, too, leading by 1.576 seconds over Bowyer, Gordon and Harvick at the 300-lap mark.
On Lap 331, a caution came out because of a man attempting to climb the fence in Turn 4. The leaders all pitted, with Keselowski narrowly winning the race off pit road over Gordon and Bowyer.
The race restarted on Lap 337, Keselowski keeping Gordon at bay for the lead. And that's the way they finished as the Penske Blanco Deuce proved unstoppable on the night.
Team owner Penske understandably was pleased, but he sounded a cautionary note, too.
"We take this in stride," said Penske. "Obviously being the top seed is a tremendous effort for the team and certainly puts us in a great place. But we're not blind. We know there's plenty of guys out there that (can) beat us, they're going to want to. What we have to do is stay on course."
Federated Auto Parts 400
Sep 6, 2014 | Richmond International Raceway - Richmond, Virginia | 300.0 mi
Pos Driver Car # Make Started Laps Led Points Driver Rating
1 Brad Keselowski 2 Ford 1 400 383 48 149.8
2 Jeff Gordon 24 Chevrolet 2 400 0 42 123.3
3 Clint Bowyer 15 Toyota 6 400 0 41 115.5
4 Jamie McMurray 1 Chevrolet 15 400 0 40 111.6
5 Kevin Harvick 4 Chevrolet 4 400 17 40 118.0
6 Joey Logano 22 Ford 5 400 0 38 106.0
7 Kurt Busch 41 Chevrolet 9 400 0 37 103.0
8 Jimmie Johnson 48 Chevrolet 3 400 0 36 98.7
9 Ryan Newman 31 Chevrolet 12 400 0 35 101.5
10 Aric Almirola 43 Ford 26 400 0 34 79.1
11 Kyle Larson 42 Chevrolet 8 400 0 33 92.0
12 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 88 Chevrolet 24 400 0 32 90.1
13 Brian Vickers 55 Toyota 18 400 0 31 82.5
14 Kyle Busch 18 Toyota 20 400 0 30 85.9
15 Tony Stewart 14 Chevrolet 19 400 0 29 84.9
16 Danica Patrick 10 Chevrolet 13 400 0 28 75.5
17 Kasey Kahne 5 Chevrolet 21 399 0 27 69.9
18 Paul Menard 27 Chevrolet 14 399 0 26 69.9
19 Greg Biffle 16 Ford 17 398 0 25 75.0
20 Austin Dillon 3 Chevrolet 28 398 0 24 66.2
21 Denny Hamlin 11 Toyota 11 398 0 23 81.4
22 Carl Edwards 99 Ford 10 396 0 22 69.7
23 AJ Allmendinger 47 Chevrolet 23 396 0 21 62.3
24 Reed Sorenson 36 Chevrolet 32 396 0 20 58.6
25 Martin Truex Jr. 78 Chevrolet 29 396 0 19 53.4
26 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 17 Ford 7 396 0 18 63.0
27 Marcos Ambrose 9 Ford 33 395 0 17 51.0
28 Justin Allgaier 51 Chevrolet 27 395 0 16 55.1
29 David Gilliland 38 Ford 30 395 0 15 54.1
30 Cole Whitt 26 Toyota 35 394 0 14 45.4
31 Casey Mears 13 Chevrolet 22 394 0 13 49.0
32 Josh Wise 98 Chevrolet 36 394 0 12 39.8
33 David Ragan 34 Ford 42 394 0 11 41.4
34 Landon Cassill 40 Chevrolet 34 394 0 0 42.5
35 Mike Bliss 37 Chevrolet 39 394 0 0 35.7
36 David Stremme 90 Chevrolet 31 392 0 8 39.1
37 Michael Annett 7 Chevrolet 40 392 0 7 40.8
38 Alex Bowman 23 Toyota 25 391 0 6 32.8
39 Travis Kvapil 32 Ford 37 391 0 5 29.1
40 Joe Nemechek 66 Toyota 41 388 0 0 26.5
41 Matt Kenseth 20 Toyota 16 330 0 3 72.0
42 Ryan Truex 83 Toyota 43 313 0 2 27.7
43 J.J. Yeley 93 Toyota 38 31 0 0 26.0
2014 Federated Auto Parts 400 Stats
Scheduled Laps: 400
Total Laps: 400
Distance: 300.0 miles
Lead Changes: 8