Former NASCAR Cup Series champion Brad Keselowski reflected on his climb into an IndyCar for a private test at Road America about a decade ago. The RFK Racing co-owner and driver explained why it never turned into a race opportunity, during the series doubleheader weekend at Phoenix Raceway.
In 2016, Keselowski joined a test session for the IndyCar Series in the No. 22 Team Penske car, piloted by Simon Pagenaud, around the 4.048-mile road course in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. The then-Team Penske No. 2 Ford driver lowered his lap times with top speeds of about 187 mph through the session as he learned new braking points and downforce behavior.
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Ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series qualifying at Phoenix, during the pre-race press conference on Saturday, the 42-year-old reflected on his brief IndyCar experience and why it never led to a race start.
“I tested a car at Road America IndyCar Road America about 10 years ago and I loved it. I had a lot of fun. What’s really really difficult is all of my time in Cup I’ve never been with a manufacturer in the Cup series that competes in the IndyCar series. And to go back and forth between the two is considerable pain for the OEMs that, is tough to justify. So, I think that window for me has probably come and gone,” Brad Keselowski said (04:30 onwards).
“There was a time where I was very very interested. But life takes us other places and I’m not complaining.”
Keselowski is now ready for a more traditional test at Phoenix Raceway.
“Start of the regular season” – Brad Keselowski on non-drafting ‘traditional racetrack’ Phoenix
Brad Keselowski also spoke about why the Phoenix race felt like the real start of the regular NASCAR season.
“Most of the teams would would tell you is the start of the regular season. It’s more of a traditional racetrack, more of what we’re going to see. It values the the things that most of the races from here on out are going to value,” Brad Keselowski said (6:30).
Keselowski began the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season while still recovering from a serious leg injury that happened during the offseason. He missed the preseason Cook Out Clash exhibition race at Bowman Gray Stadium. Doctors advised more recovery time after he broke his right femur in a skiing accident last December. But he returned for the points season at the Daytona 500 and secured a top-5 finish.
Keselowski will return to Phoenix after finishing runner-up in the championship race at the one-mile oval last season. The qualifying for Sunday’s Straight Talk Wireless 500 is set to start at 1 pm ET/12 pm CT on March 7.
Edited by Hitesh Nigam
