The first step would have been to qualify well Friday for a solid starting spot in the AAA Texas 500 on Sunday. Instead, he just dug his hole a little deeper.
The Team Penske driver will start 26th at Texas Motor Speedway. He was the only driver among the eight still eligible for the Cup title not to make it to the second round of qualifying.
“I am trying to be fast when it counts,” Keselowski said. “We weren’t fast (Friday) when it counted but I am very optimistic we can be fast on Sunday when it does count.
“We are working through all those things. We came here and tested and didn’t quite have the speed we wanted in qualifying trim then, either, but had decent race speed and hopefully that will be the case come Sunday.”
Being able to set up the car for just a few laps and making sure it doesn’t overheat is much different than setting it up for the long run, especially at a track like Texas where the right-side tires do wear.
Keselowski, who said Friday that a rack-and-pinion gear broke on his car last Sunday at Martinsville to relegate him to a 31st-place finish, is seventh in the standings, 31 points behind leader Jeff Gordon and 26 points from the current Chase cutoff.
He has the Texas race and the following race at Phoenix to be among the four drivers who advance to the best-finish-is-champion finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He can qualify with a win at Texas or Phoenix or by earning one of the remaining spots on points. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who is not eligible for the title, won the race at Martinsville, so at least two drivers will make it on points.
This isn’t an unfamiliar situation for Keselowski, who pretty much had to win at Talladega two weeks ago to advance to the third round and did just that.
“You always feel like you can get your way out of a jam and in this case it is with a win,” Keselowski said. “We were able to do that in the last round. I am optimistic we can do that in this round and the reality is it will probably take that.
“I completely understand that and am ready for that challenge and hope we have the speed to make it happen. The speed and execution and I hope I don’t screw it up if we do. I am ready for that challenge. When it comes down to moments like this great teams have to step it up. I believe we are a great team and I am ready for the challenge."
