FORD PERFORMANCE NASCAR: KENTUCKY NOTES
All three of NASCAR’s top touring series will be in action this week at Kentucky Speedway. The Camping World Truck Series kicks things off on Thursday night with the NASCAR XFINITY and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers set to race on Friday and Saturday night, respectively. Here’s a look at how Ford has fared at the 1.5-mile facility through the years.
FORD IN THE MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES AT KENTUCKY
· Ford has 2 all-time series wins at Kentucky.
· Brad Keselowski has both Ford victories and three overall at Kentucky.
FORD IN THE NASCAR XFINITY SERIES AT KENTUCKY
· Ford has 7 series wins at Kentucky.
· Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney have two each with Ford.
FORD IN THE CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES AT KENTUCKY
· Ford has 2 series victories at Kentucky.
· Greg Biffle won the inaugural race at the track in 2000 with Roush Fenway Racing.
KESELOWSKI LOVES KENTUCKY
There’s no denying that Kentucky Speedway has been one of the best tracks for Brad Keselowski, who has three MENCS wins, including two in the last four years with Ford. Included in that streak is a win in his championship season of 2012, and a track-record 199 laps led in his 2014 victory. The only place where Keselowski has won more is Talladega Superspeedway, where he has five career triumphs.
FUSION FUEL MILEAGE
Keselowski stretched his fuel the final 72 laps and held off Carl Edwards to win the Quaker State 400 in 2016. After grabbing the lead on lap 200 of the 267-lap event, Keselowski went into full conservation mode 20 laps from the finish and briefly lost the lead to Matt Kenseth with seven laps to go. Kenseth, however, was forced to pit road one lap later after running out of gas, and Keselowski regained the lead. With Carl Edwards bearing down on him, Keselowski radioed to crew chief Paul Wolfe that he was out of gas with two laps remaining, but his No. 2 Miller Lite Fusion continued plugging along and made it across the finish line 0.175 seconds ahead of Edwards. The win was Keselowski’s fourth of the season and second straight after taking the checkered flag at Daytona International Speedway.
BATTLING BACK IN 2014
Ford got its first MENCS victory at Kentucky Speedway in 2014 when Keselowski dominated most of the event. After he and teammate Joey Logano combined to lead the first 216 laps, Keselowski found himself with some ground to make up thanks to an ill-timed caution. Kyle Busch inherited the lead with 49 laps to go after being on pit road when Aric Almirola hit the wall. He stayed out while Keselowski and the other leaders pitted a couple of laps later. Keselowski came out of the pits sixth and immediately began moving toward the front. He eventually passed Busch with 20 laps to go and was never threatened from that point forward. As dominating as he was on the track, Keselowski created just as much buzz afterwards when he cut his hand shaking a champagne bottle in victory lane. The incident resulted in a delay of post-race photos as he went to the care center for what ended up being four stitches.
JACK BACK IN KENTUCKY
Jack Roush graduated in 1964 from Berea College in Berea, KY, which is approximately 100 miles south of Kentucky Speedway. Roush, who earned a degree in mathematics, immediately took a job with Ford after graduating and has been associated with the company ever since. Roush Fenway Racing has 137 all-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wins, but Kentucky Speedway is one of only three tracks where he has yet to reach Victory Lane (Chicagoland, Indianapolis).
FORD KENTUCKY MENCS RACE WINNERS
2014 – Brad Keselowski
2016 – Brad Keselowski
