2016 NASCAR Driver Spotlight Review: Brad Keselowski

Brad Keselowski 2016 Review

By Richard Tix

2016 Season Preview

Season Grade: B

Season Preview: "Just like after 2013, I see another big come back season for BK in 2016. Since 2011 he has 16 wins in 180 races, which is a win every 11.25 races. That's not a bad mark to have in your last 5 seasons (he has only raced 6 full time years). I do see another 3-4 wins, 10-13 top 10's, and 20-22 top 10's in 2016 and also for BK to be a legit contender at the end of the season. The key will be making the final four, which I think BK will do."

Season Review: Well, BK finished with four wins, 16 top 5's, and 22 top 10's which means my statistical prediction wasn't far off. Right now Keselowski is on the every other year plan when it comes to producing big statistical numbers. 2012, 2014, and now 2016 have by far been his best statistical season's thus far in his career, he must really love even numbers.

However, all of those numbers didn't equate to a good finish on the season in 2016. He and Martin Truex Jr were the two drivers who deserved to go further (based on season success and speed), but didn't get it done when they most needed to (which is what you have to do in this format). BK had finishes of 7th, 38th, and 38th in the second round of the Chase which knocked him out of contention.

Without such a poor round, he and Truex were arguable two of the guys to beat for the Championship. That's the plus side, but the fact remains that is not how it played out for either driver and both will have to move on and look for more in 2017.

Previous Driver Spotlights

2016 NASCAR Driver Spotlight Preview: Joey Logano

Joey Logano 2016 Preview

By Richard Tix

2015 Review

Joey Logano Career Paint Schemes

Everything but Martinsville went Joey Logano's way in 2016. He lead NASCAR with 6 wins and 28 top 10's (tied with Harvick), while coming up with the second most top 5's (22 to Harvicks 23) and he kicked off the season with his first career Daytona 500 win. He was a Championship favorite and went on to win Charlotte, Kansas, and Taladega during the Chase in back to back to back races. 

Then came the race that shaped his season whether he likes it or not, Martinsville. 

After Martinsville it was and uphill battle to get a win before the final round moved to Miami. JoLo came up short and the season for he and Matt Kenseth will forever be remembered for Kansas and Martinsville. 

But, on the positive note Joey announced he was here to stay after a break out season in 2014. He finally has got to the level where Mark Martin could see him getting to when he called him "sliced bread." So, will he finally be Champion in 2016?

Bold Predictions/2016 Season Expectations:

• I have Joey Logano back in the Final Four in 2016, much like 2014. Last year I was between BK and him making the final, and the one I picked would be the Champion. I went BK, but I would have been wrong either way. That's how crazy the new Chase is. I am not sure 2016 will be as successful as 2015 was according to the basic stats, but JoLo will have another nice season. I see 3-5 wins, 17-18 top 5's, and 20-22 Top 10's which are all down from 2015, but he could end up farther in the Chase.

Previous Driver Spotlights

2015 Team Spotlight Preview: Team Penske

Team Penske 2015 Season Preview

By Richard Tix

2014 Season Review

2014 Season Stats

Races: 72

Wins: 11

Top 5: 33

Top 10: 42

Pole: 6

2014 Chase Drivers: 2

Since Brad Keselowksi won the Cup title in 2012 Team Penske has been on a roll. In 2014 nothing changed as Joey Logano had a break out season and became a title favorite for 2015. In 2014 it seemed like Penske just had something figured out before everyone else.

They had speed during races and also figured out the qualifying method before most and in the end it helped both drivers make the Chase and win 5 plus races (JoLo-5 and BK- 6). 

The obvious question is can Penske do it again in 2015? Once again the car packages are changing and teams can not test like they used to. So its interesting to debate where teams will end up next year. I think Penske will continue to stay on a hot streak because they have fought through the past few seasons and stayed on top of there game even with all the changes.

Joey Logano

• 2014 was a full break out season for JoLo. He went from breaking out in 2013 to becoming a title contender in 2014. One bad and ill timed pit stop kept him from pushing Harvick for the Championship last year. From here on out JoLo's main goal will be making the final at Miami.

Brad Keselowski

• The 2012 Cup Champion had a bounce back year in 2014 after a rough 2013 season. He was back in Championship form but still came up short in the end. He didn't make many friends in 2014 but he did put up 6 wins which was the most of any driver in 2015. I think he stays hot in 2015 and maybe even makes the final four.

2015 Driver Spotlight Preview: Joey Logano

Joey Logano 2015 Season Preview

By Richard Tix

2014 Season Review

At the end of the 2013 season it looked like Joey Logano had finally arrived at the NASCAR Cup level. He finished the season off with a win, 11 top 5's and 19 top 10's which was good for an 8th place finish in points.

It looked like the move to Team Penske from Joe Gibbs Racing was a good one. Then came 2015 and JoLo set the bar even higher for himself. It looks like 2013 was the stepping stone and the 2014 season was the true break out season.

He finished 2014 with 5 wins, 16 top 5's, 22 top 10's and used all of those stats to make the Chase Finale at Homestead. The crazy thing to keep in mind is Joey is only 24 years old and will enter 2015 as a title favorite after a strong showing in 2014.

A lot can be attributed to Team Penske and the fast transition they took from 2013 to 2014, but don't rule out everything JoLo did to just the cars, he has talent. The combination of JoLo, BK, and Team Penske is continuing to look good. 

The big question is, will it continue in 2015?

Bold Predictions/2015 Season Expectations

• It's hard to imagine another season like 2014, it always seems that way with NASCAR because its hard to stay that good that long. Yet, I do think he and Penske will have another good season. I think from now on he will be a title contender year after year, but I am not sure he will win it just yet. I think either he or BK will once again make the Finale in Homestead. Another 4 wins, 11-13 top 5's, and 19-22 top 10's are what I expect from JoLo this year. 

List of Previous Driver Spotlights

2015 Driver Spotlight Preview: Brad Keselowski

Brad Keselowksi 2015 Season Preview

By Richard Tix

2014 Season Review

In 2014 it seemed like Brad Keselowski found a bit of his missing form from his 2012 title run. He wasn't near as reserved as he was in 2013 and once again let his personality out time after time. That rubbed some fans the wrong way, but at the same time was also praised by others.

In NASCAR it seems like fans want more information and personality out of there drivers until they speak and they don't agree with them. NASCAR is a tough sport to be in because it seems like no one can see eye to eye.

But in 2014 BK let it out and didn't really care what other people thought. Once again, he had a great season when just being himself. By the end of the season he had a Cup leading 6 wins and 17 top 5's. He also had 20 top 10's and 5 poles.

He was consistently one of the fastest cars every weekend and it showed. Then the Chase came and he got off to a hot start before running into trouble in the second round. He pulled off the improbable and won at Talledega to move onto the next round. BK ended up short of the Finale but all in all he had a great season on the track.

Off the track BK didn't make any friends, but he has stated many times he isn't racing to make a bunch of friends.

Hate him or love him, NASCAR needs a guy as brash as BK. Sports need different characters and different personalities. The sport was made around personalities of the 70's, 80's, and 90's. At some point NASCAR started to lack those kind of characters and I think that's when NASCAR truly lacked that extra "it" factor. 

With all the young guys coming up, and a guy like BK with an outspoken persona I think the next few years could be the next big NASCAR boom. The greatest thing about NASCAR is it has room for every type of personality and driving style. The larger the mix NASCAR gets of those two things the more exciting NASCAR could become.

Bold Predictions/2015 Season Expectations:

• Some think BK may have another down year like 2013, but I think he will come out strong again. I think he learned a lot in 2013 and used that in 2014. The big thing will be if Penske is early season adapters again. They have the resources and adapted well last year, so it should come with ease, but sometimes the sport surprises us. He wont put up 6 wins in 2015 again, but i think he can put up another 3-5. Add on 13-15 top 5's (down from 2014), and 19-21 top 10's (about the same as 2014) and he should make a strong push for title two. As most top drivers, it all comes down to those last 10 races where its make or break. BK will be in my top 3 favorites to win a title in 2015.

List of Previous Driver Spotlights

2015 Driver Spotlight Preview: Sam Hornish Jr

Sam Hornish Jr 2014 Season Preview

By Richard Tix

Sam Hornish Jr hasn't run a full season in the Sprint Cup since 2010 (ran 20 races in 2012) but will be back in a full time ride with Richard Petty Motorsports in 2015. Hornish didn't run full time in any NASCAR series in 2014, actually. 

Sam ended up running just 8 of 33 races for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the Nationwide Series in 2014 and ended up with 1 win, 4 top 5's, 4 top 10's, and 2 poles. His only win came at Iowa Speedway, which happened to be the only other race weekend I made in 2014 (other than MIS in August). He dominated that whole race and it may have been part of the reason RPM brought him back to the Cup level.

Another part of his comeback story maybe due to his 4th and 2nd place points finishes in the Nationwide Series in 2012 and 2013. Those two season's were the last ones he ran full time on the NASCAR level. 

During Hornish's Cup career he proved he was good enough to run with the big boys but never showed enough to warrant the excitement of being a top driver. In his 131 race career he has 0 wins, 3 top 5's, and 9 top 10's with an average finish of 25.5. 

Bold Predictions/2015 Season Expectations:

• It's hard to put a finger on how Sam Hornish Jr's season will go. When he left he was with Penkse Racing (now Team Penkse. Also, ran one race in 2014 with JGR filling in for Denny Hamlin) in a third car for that team. Since then they (Team Penske) have gone back to two cars and been successful. So, he was a third wheel, but this season he is joining RPM and will be one of two drivers. RPM got a win out of Aric Almirola in 2014 and maybe they will ride that streak into 2015, which would help Hornish. I personally think he will end up in the range of 2-3 top 5's and 5-8 top 10's, while finishing 21st-25th in points. He does have all the opportunity to take advantage of another shot at the Cup level.

List of Previous Driver Spotlights

2014 Team Spotlight Review: Team Penske

Team Penske 2014 Review

By Richard Tix

Season Preview

2014 Season Stats

Wins: 11

Top 5: 33

Top 10: 42

Pole: 6

In 2013 Team Penske had mixed results. Brad Keselowski came off a 2012 Championship and failed to replicate those stats in 2013. Meanwhile, Joey Logano had a break out season and got plenty comfortable at Penkse.

In 2014, the two drivers were on the same page it seemed. both had fantastic season's. After what I would call a coming out party for Joey Logano in 2013, he truly broke out in 2014 becoming a title contender. BK also got back on track in 2014 and showed once again he can contend for a Championship.

As a whole, Team Penkse brought fast cars week in and week out while looking like they were a step in front of some teams. But, when the season ended both drivers were left wanting more when they came up short of the Championship.

Brad Keselowski

• After a disappointing 2013, BK must be relieved he got back into Championship form in 2014. I think he carved out his role in NASCAR's Cup level and wont have as many down years like he did in 2013. He ended the season with the most Cup wins (6), top 5's (17), and third most top 10's (20), while finishing the season 5th in points.

Joey Logano

• JoLo broke out in 2013 but he made a splash in 2014. In 2014 he made the Chase for the second time in his career and road that confidence all the way to the Finale in Miami. He won 5 races, 16 top 5's, 22 top 20s, 1 pole, all while finishing 4th in points. Everything but Pole Awards were career highs for JoLo.

Previous Team Spotlight: Joe Gibbs Racing

2014 Driver Spotlight Review: Brad Keselowksi

Brad Keselowski 2014 Review

By Richard Tix

Season Preview

Season Grade: A-

BK had a rough and tough 2013 campaign that left him looking for more heading into 2014. He never could seem to get things going and missed the Chase just one race after he won the Sprint Cup title. 

"Keselowski did however pull it together in the Chase to steal a Win from Chase contenders and maybe get his spirits up for 2014.  So the big question in this Driver Spotlight is will BK regain his 2012 form and bounce back? I see no reason why BK can not bounce back and be a contender again. Even in a struggling 2013 season he still had glimpses of the Championship run which makes me believe he has it in him." -From 2014 Driver Spotlight Preview

Regain his form he did. BK started the season off finishing 3rd, 3rd and 1st while also grabbing his first of 5 poles. It became an early season trend for BK and Penske teammate Joey Logano to start up front or even on the front row. The two of them followed that up with 6 total poles (BK-5 and JoLo-1). 

After BK's hot start he hit a stretch where he just plain struggled and it looked like 2012 again (except he was already locked into the Chase with his win). However, in 2014 he turned it back around at Dover and had finishes of 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 1st and 1st in his next 6. 

Brad took that hot streak and won the final regular season race of the season at Richmond. The streak continued right into the Chase when he won the first Chase race at Chicagoland. Then came Charlotte.... I will not get into the full factors as much of us know what happened, but he left Charlotte with a small shot to advance and a lot of enemies going into Talladega, were its a wild card race.

Needing a win to have any shot at advancing, Brad charged to the front almost all day at Talladega and pulled off the exciting win to advance to the Eliminator Round (last eight). Things started out rocky when he finished 31st in the first race at Martinsville and things boiled over into the next race of the round, Texas. Knowing he needed a win and running third BK tried to take a "hole" between Gordon and Johnson in a late restart and it didn't work out. It left he and Jeff Gordon all but needing a win at Phoenix to advance to Miami.

As we know, neither driver advanced to Miami (where they would have lost to Harvick anyways). Even though he didn't advance to the final, 2014 has to be looked at as a huge success. BK got back on track and showed his style of racing to everyone. He may have picked up some new enemies along the way but he also picked up a Cup leading 6 wins in 2014 (His new career high). With that, BK also picked up a career high 17 top 5's and 20 top 10's (his second highest career mark). He was one of the fastest drivers on the Cup level all season but came up short finishing 5th in points. Next year it will be interesting to see if Penske can keep the speed up or if others will start to catch up.

• List of past Driver Sporlights

2014 Driver Spotlight Review: Joey Logano

Joey Logano 2014 Review

By Richard Tix

2014 Preview

Season Grade: A

"2013 was hands down Logano's best season in the Cup Series with new Career highs in average finish position, top 10's, and top 5's. It was a bumpy first season with Penske, but not because of a lack of chemistry. It seemed that other then problems with Nascar Officials and Rules that Joey fit right in at Penske. Penske now has two young drivers with something to prove in 2014. I think now that Penske has another year under its belt with Ford and the Gen-6 car, and Joey Logano is also in year two with them, that he will have once again his best season yet. Joey Logano might be one of the drivers this season that takes his driving up to the next level and is talked about week to week as a race contender." - My Preseason take on Joey Logano from the Preview

2013 was JoLo's first season with Team Penske and he showed new life as a NASCAR Cup driver. He did this in a season where Penske and Ford seemed to lack the speed to really keep up with the likes of Hendrick and Joe Gibbs.

Enter 2014. Joey just had his best season ever (I know, that's what I said in the season preview about 2013) and now will be considered a title contender in 2015. So how did he get there?

In 2014 Joey Logano was the second driver to get multiple wins (first was Harvick) and lock in his Chase spot for sure. Joey Logano had his first season with multiple wins in 2014 (5 total) after having just just 3 his first 183 races. 

Joey rounded out his 2014 season with 16 top 5's (career high) and 22 top 10's (also a career high) on his way to second career and second straight Chase appearance. Once in the Chase, Joey reeled off finishes of 4th, 1st, 4th, 1st, and 4th to start. His top 5 streak ended when he helped Brad Keselowski win at Talladega which left Joey finishing 11th (he was already locked into the next round). He fought through a tough race at Phoenix to get to the finale in Miami.

Once in the final he looked like the co-favorite with Harvick, but a rough pit stop late in the race where a jack-man dropped the jack and sent Joey to the back, ended his title run. Overall Joey had one heck of a season and made a run that not many saw coming. I think he takes that fuel and passion from this season and brings it back in 2015.

• List of past Driver Spotlights

Juan Pablo Montoya Returns to NASCAR

JPM Returns to NASCAR in 2014

By Richard Tix

Juan Pablo returns! It feels like yesterday, well it practically was, when Juan Pablo Montoya was racing in the NASCAR Cup Series. Last year Gannassi and JPM cut ties leaving Juan out of a NASCAR Cup ride. Instead of trying to catch on with a smaller Cup team Juan moved onto the Verizon Indycar Series with Team Penske.

Montoya moved back to open wheel after 7 season's in NASCAR. JPM had 2 career wins and 24 top 5 finishes in that time frame but never could win the Brickyard after finishing second once. Well, in 2014, Juan will get another shot. Today it was officially announced that he would be driving the #12 Team Penske car at the Brickyard and the June Michigan International Speedway race (Quicken Loans 400). 

Juan Pablo Montoya will look to do something no other driver has done, and that is win at IMS in Indycar and NASCAR. Not only will he be trying for a win, but Roger Penske is also using this as a strategic move to also get a win at IMS. "It has been a good start to the season with Team Penske in the Verizon IndyCar Series and it will be fun to get back behind the wheel of the Cup car," Montoya said in a team release. "It's hard to believe, but Roger Penske has never won the Brickyard 400. I think that Brad, Joey and I will give Roger and Team Penske a great opportunity to check that off the list and we should be strong at Michigan as well."

Juan Pablo will be running the #12 Penske Ford sponsored by SKF at MIS, but the sponsor for IMS will be named at a later date. Team Penske will have Greg Erwin as JPM Crew Cheif of the #12 this season. The rumors came out Tuesday 4/29 that Montoya would be returning to NASCAR and it got Twitter going. But it wasn't until today that it became official.

What I think is interesting is that Team Penske did not say he will be driving at either road course this season in NASCAR. I thought it would be a smart move to bring back the open wheel driver to Sonoma or Watkins Glenn but as of now he will just be running at IMS and MIS.

The #12 Ford will also be running May at Kansas and Oct at Talladega. For those races Ryan Blaney will be attempting to qualify with Erwin also the CC. It will be interesting to see JPM back in NASCAR especially since he might have a shot at IMS. I still believe Team Penske should look at fielding the #12 car at both road courses during the season with JPM driving, but hey my name isn't Roger Penske.

More on Juan Pablo:

• Fox Sports JPM Story
• Juan Pablo to Run Brickyard- ESPN
• JPM to Run Sprint Cup Races for Penske- Sporting News

Ahead of the Learning Curve

Team Penske Tries to Stay in Front of the Pack

By Richard Tix

Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano and Team Penske have started out the 2014 NASCAR season better then anyone could have expected. I think if you ask both drivers they would both look at you and say that it has been a dream first three races.

After just three races Brad Keselowski is all but locked into the Chase after a win at Las Vegas. "It's just such a reliever for everyone on the team to get that win in early, and be able to enjoy the races and opportunities that we have instead of being stressed out about them," Keselowski said. "You know, I think if anything it actually lends itself to better racing." This being said after the Vegas race this past Sunday. It should give the #2 team the freedom to take a few extra chances, sort of like what Dale Earnardt Jr did at the end of the race when he ran out of fuel.

The past two weeks, Vegas and Phoenix, have had starting front row's of Brad and Joey. Brad Keselowski won the Pole over Joey at Phoenix and the two flip flopped at Las Vegas. The Team Penske Fords have been locked in to start the 2014 season, which comes as a relief after the 2013 season seemed to be a tough year for all Ford manufactured teams.

So far team Penske (the #2 and #22) have a combined 5 Top 10's, 5 Top 5's, 2 Poles, and 1 win in 3 races. The only non top 10 (or top 5 for that matter) was Joey Logano's 11th place finish at Daytona. I would say that is a start any team owner would be proud of. 

Combined the two Penske drivers have an average finish of 4.33. Both drivers have also led a lap in each race to start the season. The two drivers have also seemed to figure out the new qualifying system fast. In the two knock out style qualifying attempts this year Team Penske has won both Poles (Daytona qualifying was run as it has in the past, non knock out style). 

"It gets crazy out there," said Logano, who earned his eighth career pole at Las Vegas "I think it's way cooler than old-style qualifying, don't get me wrong. It's awesome. We're all learning right now. It's all new to us, but we're having fun with it. I enjoy it. I think it's cool."

And obviously he and Team Penske have figured it out and been ahead of the curve, "That's the whole point of this," Logano said  "A lot more preparation goes into it, a lot more communication between myself, my spotter, my crew chief. Not really about our race car, but how are we going to go out there, and what's our game plan? Every time we've had a game plan going into it, it's changed so far. At least we're pulling audibles and they're working."

If Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, and Team Penske can stay ahead of the learning curve they could put themselves into a good position to make a Championship push. One thing is for sure, racing well early in the season sure will take some pressure off of you. Winning early should give you extra time to work out all the kinks and learn what gambles may and may not work. Guys who have a win early can start to look deeper into Chase strategies for track that they visit during the last 10 races. 

Check out some other NASCAR Behind the Wall Post's:

• Power Rankings
• Previous Articles
• Paint Scheme's

NASCAR Team Spotlight: Team Penske

Team Penske 2014 Preview

By Richard Tix

Now up on NASCAR Behind the Wall a new team, or maybe just a new team name. 2012 ended pretty well for Penkse, they brought home there first Championship when Brad Keselowski won. 2013 wasn't as easy. The team ran a little too far into the "gray" area and BK struggled. On the bright side, with BK's two cents, they brought in Joey Logano and he had his best season so far. The two young drivers will look to jump up in the standings in 2014 along with groom in Ryan Blaney (Scheduled to run at least 2 races in 2014).

2013 Team Stats

• Wins: 2
• Top 5: 20
• Top 10: 35

Brad Keselowski

• After winnning the Championship in 2012, 2013 couldnt have been anymore of a wake up call. The #2 team ran into some troubles and bumps in the road and never could quiet overcome them. BK did finish the season off with his first win during the Chase and maybe carrying that over into 2014.

Joey Logano

• Joey notched a in in 2013 in his first year with Penske while also setting career high's in top 5's (11) and top 10's (19). BK run his mouth, but he did say that Penske should bring in Logano which looks like a great decision. JoLo might have just hit the tip of the iceberg in 2013 with 2014 bringing even bigger things.

Previous Team Spotlight: Stewart Haas Racing