Brad Keselowski was credited with an 18th-place finish in the Ford EcoBoost 400 Sunday evening at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The driver of the Discount Tire Ford Mustang finished the 2019 season eighth in the NASCAR Cup Series point standing, 21 points behind seventh-place teammate Ryan Blaney and 28 ahead of ninth-place Clint Bowyer. Keselowski started eighth in the 267-lap, 400-mile event after rain washed out qualifying. He was running eighth on lap 25 when he radioed the team that the balance on the No. 2 Mustang was tight. Crew chief Paul Wolfe called his driver to pit road for their first stop of the day on lap 34 for four tires and a wedge adjustment. When the cycle of green flag stops was complete, Keselowski was 12th. But the handling characteristics didn’t improve as the stage progressed. He was still struggling to turn, and he fell a lap down on lap 67. Keselowski was credited with a 18th-place finish when Stage 1 ended on lap 80. Wolfe made the call for four tires and a track bar adjustment when Keselowski pitted during the stage caution on lap 84. He restarted 16th when the race went green on lap 86. The adjustments by Wolfe improved the balance of the Discount Tire Ford. By lap 107 Keselowski said his car was turning better and was a just a tick on the free side. He was running 15th we he made a scheduled stop under green on lap 118 for four tires and an air pressure adjustment. Early in the run Keselowski said his Discount Tire Ford was very good but after a few laps it began to tighten up. By lap 137 the balance had shifted to where he was way too tight again but appeared to catch a break in the form of the second caution on lap 138. Keselowski took the wave around back onto the lead lap and lined up 17th for the restart on lap 142. He stayed on the lead lap over the final laps of segment. Keselowski finished 21st when Stage 2 ended on lap 160 but pitted with the lead lap cars on lap 163 and restarted 19th on lap 166. The final 101 laps of the race ran caution-free and was a tough stretch for Keselowski and the Discount Tire team. On lap 191 Keselowski told the team that his Mustang was “eight on a 10-scale tight” especially in the center of the corners. He pitted as scheduled on lap 206 under green for four tires and a significant track bar adjustment. Sixty-one laps later Keselowski ended his season with a 18th-place finish.
Leave A Comment