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Nov122012

Monday, November 12, 2012 at 10:14AM

November 14, 2012

What is NASCAR going to do about Brad Keselowski?

By Peter M. De Lorenzo

(Posted 11/12, 10:30 a.m.) Detroit. After the carnage settled from the Phoenix wreck-a-thon, it's apparent that NASCAR is on the verge of having its first champion born after 1980 in Brad Keselowski. Yes, of course anything can happen at the upcoming Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, and I'm not crowning Keselowski just yet, but no matter what happens next Sunday this young man is going to be a force to be reckoned with for years to come on the NASCAR stage.

And that, in many ways, presents NASCAR with a problem.

On the one hand I view Keselowski as the brightest light to hit NASCAR in years. He's whip-smart, articulate, thoughtful, and he has one thing a lot of drivers don't have at his age, and that's perspective. You listen to what Keselowski has to say, no matter what the situation, and this young man gets it like no other driver out there does. And NASCAR should be thrilled to death that they have him, because there's a chance he'll draw even more young viewers into the sport.

But it presents a quandary to the NASCAR powers that be too. Yes, of course they will deny that having Brad Keselowski as their 2012 Sprint Cup Champion presents any issue at all, that they'll be pleased beyond words to have him in that role, but the reality is that it has the potential to open a Pandora's Box of lucidity, perspective, criticism and discussion that NASCAR isn't prepared for. It's one thing when "young Brad" embraces twitter nation as the up-and-coming NASCAR star, it's quite another when the media gets a hold of Brad Keselowski, Sprint Cup Champion.

Will Keselowski embarrass the sport? Absolutely not. If he were to become Sprint Cup Champion I think it would do wonders for NASCAR and Brad would be a superb representative for the sport. But make no mistake, Keselowski doesn't suffer fools gladly and his bullshit detector is very strong. He will keep NASCAR on its toes and his comments will be laser-accurate and pointed if need be.

Should Brad Keselowski become the new face of NASCAR, I couldn't imagine a more gifted and eloquent representative of the sport.

But NASCAR needs to listen closely to what Brad Keselowski has to say.

Better yet, they should act on his suggestions, because he's usually dead solid perfect with his perspectives and his ideas on what the sport needs.

Publisher's Note: As part of our continuing series celebrating the "Glory Days" of racing, we're proud to present another noteworthy image from the Ford Racing Archives. - PMD

(Courtesy of the Ford Racing Archives and Wieck Media)
Daytona Beach, Florida, 1963. Ned Jarrett poses in front of his No. 11 Burton-Robinson Ford before the 1963 Daytona 500. Jarrett would finish third in the race behind Tiny Lund (No. 21 Wood Brothers English Motors Ford) and Fred Lorenzen (No. 28 Holman-Moody Lafayette Ford). Watch a weird and at times cheesy video here.

Publisher's Note: Like these Ford racing photos? Check out www.fordimages.com. Be forewarned, however, because you won't be able to go there and not order something. - PMD

See another live episode of "Autoline After Hours" with hosts John McElroy, from Autoline Detroit, and Peter De Lorenzo, The Autoextremist, and guests this Thursday evening, at 7:00PM EDT at www.autolinedetroit.tv.