Friday Night Mash Up

Brad Keselowski goes two for two

Keselowski may stick in your craw, but at the end of the day Bad Brad gets it done.

Judging from the sound bytes of his peers and the on-track retaliation of Carl Edwards, Keselowski doesn't have too many BFFs in the garage.  And there's also a core group of NASAR fans who don't appreciate his checkers or wreckers style. 

But say what you will about ol' Brad. During the past two weeks Keselowski has shown he can win without causing the big one.

Tonight, what looked like a major screwup on live TV ended up giving Team Brad the win. When Paul Menard caused a caution with six laps to go, the No. 22 took four tires, giving up the first place spot. Meanwhile, the lurker Kyle Busch stayed out and gained P1, causing even the ESPN broadcasters to predict a Kyle Busch victory.

And that's what's so great about NASCAR. The probable doesn't always happen.  And even the most logical of predictions don't always come true.

Keselowski ended up scrambling for the win, passing Kyle Busch and a few other contenders with seeming ease. And after last week's Talladega victory, he's positioned to vie for his first Nationwide championship.

Maybe it's good to be Bad Brad after all ...

What's next - the plague?

Mother Nature seems to be toying with NASCAR this season.  It all began with pre-season snowfall at Daytona International Speedway.  There was rain at Martinsville. Rain at Texas. Tornadoes near Talladega.  And today's news?  An earthquake at Richmond no less.

Troublesome conditions seem to follow the NASCAR circuit like the National Enquirer follows Dale Jr. 

Makes you wonder what's next for Darlington - a plague of locusts?

Speaking of Dale Jr.

Thanks to the folks at DEI for forwarding the below pix of yesterday's big announcement that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive the No. 3 Wrangler Chevy at Daytona in July.

Today, Junior talked to the press at Richmond International Raceway about how he feels about driving the car ... and whether or not there's any truth to the National Enquirer's story about his (ahem) alleged indiscretion.

Regarding the No. 3 car:

"At first, I was uncomfortable about it initially but the more I kind of see everybody together and the car itself and stuff like that, the more I get excited about it and the more I am happy about doing it. I wouldn’t want to do anything to upset anybody, the fans or anything like that. I feel like I do a good job of staying within the guidelines of respect and taste regarding my Father and what he accomplished and his fans and all that stuff.”

And about that Enquirer article accusing Junior of breaking up a marriage?

“We’ve been in there (the National Enquirer) a lot. I don’t know why we keep popping up in there. I guess we are relevant in some realm. You learn a lot of new stuff about yourself that you never knew before.”

“There is no truth to that particular story or any of the other ones for that matter if we want to set the record straight.”

“The Enquirer is pretty creative. I have to hand it to them.”

Discuss amongst yourselves.