With 17 laps left in Monday’s rain-delayed Daytona 500, Brad Keselowski was running at the front of the field, a contender to win the Great American Race for the first time.
Barely more than half a lap later, Keselowski’s No. 2 Team Penske Ford was wrecked beyond repair, the victim of a 19-car accident. The chain-reaction incident started when Joey Logano bump-drafted Aric Almirola’s Ford into Keselowski’s car, knocking it sideways near the front of the field.
Keselowski was eliminated from the race in 36th place.
“It was just one of those racing deals,” Keselowski said after leaving the infield care center. “We had a really good Discount Tire Ford. My team did an incredible job today to put ourselves in position to lead a lot of laps and run upfront. I am proud of the way we started with some fast race cars. Unfortunately, it didn’t come together there at the end.
I probably made a little bit of a bad move not blocking the 6 (Ryan Newman) and 95 (Christopher Bell). I didn’t know the 95 was that darn fast. He pushed the 6 like a rocket and I didn’t think they would come with that big of a run and when they did, I didn’t cover it. I put myself into a position where when they did wreck, I couldn’t make it through.”
