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: 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.

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