NASCAR
The Captain’s Fleet Looks for Strong Run at Kentucky After Devastating Daytona Results
Last week at Daytona, Team Penske looked to have 3 strong chances at a win. Both Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano are considered the some of the best active plate racers. In addition, Ryan Blaney led over half of February’s Daytona 500, so he was considered a strong contender. However, the Daytona results were far from expected for Team Penske. The lap 55 big one saw all 3 of the Penske cars collected, ending each of their 3 shots at the win. Penske looks to bounce back this weekend at Kentucky, a track where all 3 of their drivers have seen success.
The highest finishing Penske driver in last week’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 from Daytona was Brad Keselowski. After being at the front of the major incident, Brad finished 36th. Joey and Ryan were both not far behind their teammate, finishing 39th and 40th respectively. This is the first time Blaney has finished last in a Cup Series race.
Keselowski’s Stellar Kentucky Stats
Nobody in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series has better numbers at Kentucky Speedway than Brad Keselowski. In the 7 races at the Sparta track, Brad has 3 wins, 5 top 10s, and 483 laps led. If anyone has a chance at knocking the ‘Big 3’ off of their stranglehold on the 1.5 mile tracks, it will be Brad. So far in 2018, Brad has 5 top 10s in 6 starts on 1.5 mile tracks. Can Brad achieve a 50% win percentage at Kentucky? He is sure to be a contender on Saturday night, as he qualified 4th for the 400 mile race.
Logano Looking for More in Kentucky
Joey Logano is a very consistent threat for the win at Kentucky Speedway. Though winless in his 7 starts there, Joey has 4 top 10s and an average finish of 14th. Joey’s best finish in The Bluegrass State is 2nd in 2015. Joey also has a previous streak of 3 straight Xfinity Series wins at Kentucky. In order to win this weekend however, Joey will have a tough uphill battle. He will start 19th on Saturday after a disappointing run in qualifying on Friday.
Blaney Looking to Reverse Season of Bad Luck
So far in 2018, Ryan Blaney has led an impressive 463 laps, the most of any non-winner. Blaney has had race-winning speed on multiple occasions this season, but bad luck has kept him from capitalizing, with only 8 top 10s in 18 starts for 2018. Though he only has 2 starts at Kentucky, Blaney scored a top 10 there a year ago. He also has 2 Xfinity wins there, including his first career victory in 2013. Blaney was a pleasant surprise in Friday’s qualifying session, as he made the final round and will start 7th.
If there is a favorite among the Penske drivers to win at Kentucky, I would give the nod to Keselowski. Despite terrible Daytona results however, I do think any of the 3 Penske cars could pull into victory lane Saturday. Don’t miss a lap of the Quaker State 400 from Kentucky Speedway. Coverage will start on NBCSN tomorrow night at 7:30 PM EST.
