Brad Keselowski slowly getting back on his feet as NASCAR goes to Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS — Just as four plus two equals six, the driver of the No. 6 car is getting back on his two feet now four races into the season.

Brad Keselowski sits 16th in the NASCAR Cup Series points standings with a top-20 finish in all four races. Last year at this time, he was 30th in points with no laps led and just one top-25 finish.

Crutches, cane or steering wheel in hand, no matter – Keselowski is off to his best start since 2023. 

“I like the execution we have, I think all three teams have run really smart races,” Keselowski said. “I’m proud that our cars are not falling apart. Mechanically, they’re sound. We’ve got some great mechanics and great work going on. Our pit stops have been, across all three teams, really strong and very high level.”

The team has had to put together some gutsy performances – most recently at Phoenix when issues in practice kept him from qualifying but couldn’t keep him from a top-15 finish. 

It all prepared Keselowski for when he got out of the car and the real work began. 

“I’m just jamming in all of the PT work with some of the best professionals. I’m building stronger every week but not as fast as I’d want to,” Keselowski said.

Keselowski said at Phoenix his six-month recovery is down to three or four months with the progress he has made.

“Driving a racecar is a blessing because it’s pushing my recovery. When I get in the car, it does hurt and pulls me backward. The adrenaline helps but when it wears off, it hurts like when I fly back. I’ll work to get back to where I was at Phoenix and then after Vegas, I’ll work to get ahead of that,” he said.

Keselowski described Las Vegas as one of the most challenging ovals with the NextGen car for the narrow groove you have to run to be fast.

“What makes the NextGen car challenging is, it hates bumpy racetracks. When you hit one of those bumps, it feels so out of control. It’s a gutsy track so if you make a mistake, you can hit the wall pretty easily,” he said.

Keselowski’s best NextGen finish at Las Vegas is fourth in the Fall 2023 race where he led 38 of 267 laps. Since then, he has scored three more finishes of 13th or better at the 1.5-mile, D-shaped oval.

Last year, Preece, Keselowski and Buescher finished in the same order in the spring (third, 11th and 13th) and the fall (ninth, 10th and 12th). That’s big for Preece who sits just below the cutline but not far behind Keselowski and Buescher.

After Preece won the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, Keselowski is now the one on RFK who has had the longest absence from victory lane.

Luckily for Keselowski, the site of his last win – the spring Darlington race – is coming up next.

However, with less horsepower and more downforce, this year’s spring Darlington race is promising to be something completely different.

“To go 50 laps on a set of tires was almost impossible with the Next Gen car and now that we have more horsepower and less aero, I don’t know if we’re gonna be able to go 35 laps. So, keeping up with the tires is going to be a big challenge. The drivers managing it, the teams putting our setups to where it can do it. Darlington is going to be a heavy lift,” Keselowski said. 

Keselowski believes in his team and has high expectations for 2026. 

“My goal for RFK as a team is for us to get five wins. We need more speed to do that,” he said. “If we can develop a little bit of pace, we can be a very dangerous team [RFK].”

Ford has won two of the last three Las Vegas Cup races. The last time RFK Racing won at Las Vegas was in 2011 under the Roush-Fenway Racing banner with Carl Edwards.

“A lot of PT work. I’m just jamming in all of the PT work with some of the best professionals. I’m building stronger every week but not as fast as I’d want to. Driving a racecar is a blessing because it’s pushing my recovery. When I get in the car, it does hurt and pulls me backward. The adrenaline helps but when it wears off, it hurts like when I fly back. I’ll work to get back to where I was at Phoenix and then after Vegas, I’ll work to get ahead of that,” Keselowski said.