By: Zach Catanzareti, Staff Writer
When Brad Keselowski won the pole for Saturday’s Lakes Region 200, many may have been putting his name in Victory Lane from the start.
That is until his No. 22 Team Penske Ford was pushed to the rear of the field after the 2010 XFINITY Series champion was late to the driver’s meeting Saturday morning. This would mean a run to the front was nearly guaranteed for the fans in attendance at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
And that’s what they got. From 38th, Keselowski drove to finish Stage 1 in the fifth spot. And after winning the race off pit road to start Stage 2, he drove away from Ryan Preece to lead the race for an eventual 72 laps.
But the win wasn’t as easy. Preece would put up an effort throughout the 200-lapper and Christopher Bell would out-run Keselowski in a mad dash to the checkereds.
“Christopher drove really well,” Keselowski said. “It seemed the No. 20 car and our No. 22 car were the class of the field and it would probably come down to us at the end. He did a good job, they made the right call to put four tires on to get us there.”
While Preece would struggle to keep up on the inside lane, Keselowski was able to ride the high lane’s VHT compound to stay with Bell’s No. 20 Toyota.
Using it through the race’s full distance, Keselowski noticed how it affected the racing from start to end.
“It is certainly very interesting how it plays out,” he said. “Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad for the racing. Generally, at the start it’s good and at the end, it’s pretty bad for it. It’s interesting to see how that swings. It’s very dynamic.”
Keselowski entered Saturday looking for his fourth straight XFINITY win dating back to Richmond Raceway in the fall of 2017. Despite coming up short, Keselowski appreciates the comeback from his Penske crew and perhaps learned a thing or two for Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race.
“You get mad at second but you kind of don’t,” he said. “You try to respect the fact it was a great car and a great effort from our team but know the potential was there for more.
“Even if you’re not learning, you’re sharpening your skills. Hopefully, we’ll get to race tomorrow.”