Keselowski Wins with Broken Ankle...

Yee haa. I've been following him a long time, and he always had talent, but now he has matured. :beerbang:

Kind of pathetic how the media is now saying that Brad has a broken ankle. It's a bad sprain with a chipped bone.
 
Kind of pathetic how the media is now saying that Brad has a broken ankle. It's a bad sprain with a chipped bone.

Avulsion Fracture: It's gotta hurt like hell. Bad Brad earned that win! Great effort by both Penske cars.

I really thought that Pee Wee was gonna get him, though...
 
DJ Rossi, I am pretty sure no matter WHO won you woulda created this thread featuring that drivers name and car make....
 
Brad Keselowski wins at PoconoEmailPrintComments473Associated Press
Painful Victory For Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowski fought through a broken ankle to claim his 2nd win of the season at Pocono
Tags: PoconoPainful Victory For Brad Keselowski
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Painful Victory For Brad Keselowski
Painful Victory For Brad KeselowskiBrad Keselowski fought through a broken ankle to claim his 2nd win of the season at PoconoTags: PoconoBrad Keselowski Gets 2nd Win Of The Year
Brad Keselowski Gets 2nd Win Of The YearBrad Keselowski sets himself up for a wild card spot with his 2nd win of the seasonTags: PoconoLONG POND, Pa. -- Brad Keselowski was inspired Sunday by a relative in the Navy Seals, and that was all he needed to push through his painful ankle injury.

Keselowski's cousin lost a friend who was one of 30 American service members who died when their helicopter was shot down during fighting in eastern Afghanistan. The NASCAR driver took the sacrifice to heart, and vowed he would not leave his car no matter how bad he hurt.




Davis: Pain, Pride, Honor
Brad Keselowski has a broken ankle, a tenuous grasp on a Chase spot and the attitude that if he was going to race at Pocono, he was going to race well. His win helped deliver a thriller to fans everywhere, writes K. Lee Davis. Story

So Keselowski went out and raced all 500 miles of the Sprint Cup stop at Pocono Raceway with a broken left ankle.

As if that wasn't enough, he somehow managed to win, too.

Competing with a brace on his ankle, Keselowski sped off on the final restart late in the race to pick up his second victory of the season. He gingerly climbed out of his car to celebrate with his crew in Victory Lane.

He dedicated the victory -- one that thrust him into Chase contention -- to the troops in Afghanistan.

"I might not be feeling great, but those are the guys that are really making sacrifices," Keselowski said. "Whenever I got in the car and felt like, man, this really hurts, it was good inspiration as to what it takes to 'man up' and make it happen."

Keselowski was an unlikely winner after he crashed head-on into a wall on Wednesday during a test session at Road Atlanta. He slammed a section of wall at 100 mph and was forced out of the Nationwide Series race.

He insisted during practice this weekend he wouldn't leave the No. 2 Dodge, no matter the aches and pain.

No relief driver was necessary, though Keselowski had some rest during a 1 hour, 40-minute rain delay.


[+] Enlarge
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Brad Keselowski celebrates with a burnout after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Pocono Raceway. Keselowski was able to drive to Victory Lane despite racing with a broken left ankle.
"I was amazed he raced the full race," third-place finisher Kurt Busch said.

Keselowski's victory placed him in prime position to claim one of two wild-card spots available for the Chase for the championship. The top two drivers with the most victories in 11th to 20th place earn a wild-card spot for the playoffs.

Keselowski, in 18th place, is the only one of the wild-card contenders with two victories. Only five races remain until the field is set. The top 10 drivers in the points standings automatically qualify.

"It gives us pretty high odds if we're playing poker," he said.

Keselowski posted several updates on his injury this week on his Twitter page, including two photos that showed a swollen ankle and an abrasion on his foot. His broken left ankle ballooned to the size of a softball, and he needed a left shoe a size larger than his right one.

"There's no good time, but this is certainly the worst time," he said Friday.

No way. Keselowski won his third career Cup race and first since he won in June at Kansas.

"I came here to win," he said. "When you let the pain get into your head that far that you don't believe you can win anymore, you can't win the race."

Kyle Busch was second, Jimmie Johnson fourth and Ryan Newman fifth.


Pocono Results

Brad Keselowski picked up his second win of the year, driving to victory at Pocono despite racing with a broken left ankle.

1. Brad Keselowski, Dodge
2. Kyle Busch, Toyota
3. Kurt Busch, Dodge
4. Jimmie Johnson, Cevrolet
5. Ryan Newman, Chevrolet
6. Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet
7. Carl Edwards, Ford
8. Greg Biffle, Ford
9. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet
10. Paul Menard, Chevrolet
Complete results
Kurt Busch and Johnson had a heated exchange after the race because of some last-lap contact and had to be separated by their crews. The star drivers took turns bumping into each other on the final lap. Busch said it was simply hard racing and Johnson, the five-time defending Cup champion, overreacted.

"You want to race, let's race," Busch said. "I raced him smart, raced him clean, and he wants to come back here and (complain) about it. Why can't we race each other like this and put on a show for the fans?"

There was a racing tripleheader after rain halted the Trucks Series race on Saturday and wiped out the ARCA race. Kevin Harvick won the Trucks race, Ty Dillon took ARCA and Keselowski capped it all with his gutsy performance.

"There are moments in our sport that need to be documented as an `Iron Man' type of day," Kurt Busch said. "It's amazing what the body can do."

Rain hit Pocono hard the last two days and when the red flag came on lap 125, Joey Logano had the lead. He took a break in the ESPN broadcast booth where he was asked if he wanted the rain to stop or keep coming.

"I think it's a dumb question," he said.

Logano faded hard after a blown tire and finished 26th. Points leader Carl Edwards, who signed a multiyear extension with Roush Fenway Racing, was seventh.

Once the rain stopped, Kyle Busch build a sizable lead until it was wiped out on a final caution.

That was the opening Keselowski needed over the final 16 laps and he took advantage -- even with only one good ankle.

"It doesn't feel good, but I'll be all right," he said.
 
Unless it's Toyota. Only "american" brands for him.
 
Legendary performance. Just racing the whole race was impressive, but out racing Kyle in that condition took huge concentration. He didn't miss a corner, while Kyle kept over driving and burning his tires.
 
Congrats to Brad butt I don't beleive driving one race with a swollen left ankle earns him the "Iron Man" title. Maybe a few years down the road he can claim it but for now:
Ricky Rudd is the "Iron Man" of NASCAR; holding the record for most consecutive starts in NASCAR racing. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, Rudd had made 788 consecutive starts, and has a total of 23 wins, 194 top 5's, and 373 top 10's.
 
Congrats to Brad butt I don't beleive driving one race with a swollen left ankle earns him the "Iron Man" title. Maybe a few years down the road he can claim it but for now:
Ricky Rudd is the "Iron Man" of NASCAR; holding the record for most consecutive starts in NASCAR racing. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, Rudd had made 788 consecutive starts, and has a total of 23 wins, 194 top 5's, and 373 top 10's.

True, and until someone can drive a race with their eyes taped open (Ricky did), driving with a bad ankle ain't nothin':cool:
 
Win in Cup in 2011..With a broke frickin Foot!! The Man!! HOOYAAA!!
 
The race was at Pocono, so you'll see that word a lot for a couple of days, but they aren't about the same thing.
 
Wild Card Chase Excitement-- Keselowski..

Season's real excitement comes via wild-card race
By Joe Menzer, NASCAR.COM
August 08, 2011 4:22 PM, EDT

type size: + - For those willing to wait out the one hour, 40-minute rain delay in the Good Sam RV Insurance 500 at Pocono Raceway on Sunday, the rewards were tremendous.

There was the obvious feel-good story -- well, it felt good for everyone but Brad Keselowski -- of Keselowski winning the race in his No. 2 Dodge despite a broken left ankle suffered five days earlier during a test session that went awry at Road Atlanta. And despite the severe pain in that ankle and from other injuries suffered in the testing crash, Keselowski's mental outlook could not have been brighter after reaching Victory Lane for the second time this season.

The fact that the wild-card scenario is drawing so much attention is a clear indication that this is the best tweak to the Chase ever executed by NASCAR."It's been a hell of a week," he told reporters afterward, in summing it up.

There were a number of sub-stories to come out of the race at the 2.5-mile triangle as well. Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch banged on each other on the final lap coming toward the start/finish line, and then exchanged angry words afterward. They left everyone with the distinct impression that they aren't done messing with each other on the race track. Joey Logano, whose No. 20 Toyota seemingly was the car to beat early on, saw his chance to win evaporate when the rain clouds disappeared and then had his hopes for a strong finish dashed by a late flat tire.

But when examining the big picture following Sunday's race, the most compelling sub-story of all also was tinted heavily with a Keselowski flavor. We're talking wild card, of course.


Wild-card outlook

The fact that the wild-card scenario is drawing so much attention is a clear indication that this is the best tweak to the Chase ever executed by NASCAR.

Critics of the Chase have long argued that the biggest problem with it is that it puts the week-in, week-out focus too much on solely the top 10 or 12 drivers in the point standings, especially as the season enters its latter stages. The other 30-plus drivers are all but forgotten, such critics say.

First of all, that's not entirely true. If non-Chase contenders want to gain some attention, it's no different than as before. Run better. Win some races or at least contend for them, and you'll surely garner your share of attention from the media and otherwise.

Secondly, if there were only four or five guys with a legitimate shot of the championship at this point, wouldn't the focus be even more narrowed on them? The bottom line is that now, with the addition of the wild-card element to the Chase, watching these guys jockey for the final positions in the sport's 12-driver playoffs has never been more exciting.

You know the rules by now. But for a quick review, the top 10 in points after the first 26 races automatically qualify for the Chase -- but as of this year, the final two Chase slots are reserved for wild-card entries. Those would be the two drivers with the most race victories who also are in the top 20 in points.

Keselowski obviously firmed up his chances to make the Chase as a wild-card entry, but he wasn't the only mover and shaker in a wild-card picture that looks wilder by the minute.

Denny Hamlin, the master at Pocono of late, led a bunch of laps early but was cursed by pit-road mistakes late in the 500-mile race. He finished 15th and fell to 11th in the points standings, but is still Chase-eligible as a wild-card selection. Keselowski, still a precarious 18th in the standings even after Sunday's statement win, would at the moment claim the other wild-card spot.


Much to be settled

But this wild-card deal is far from over.

Paul Menard and David Ragan both have race victories as well. They have five races left to earn a second victory and try to finish above Keselowski in the points. (After Sunday's race, Menard was 14th and Ragan 19th).

Then there are all the guys who are capable of winning races this season, but haven't. That includes a gaggle of drivers such as Clint Bowyer (12th in points), Greg Biffle (13th), Mark Martin (15th), Kasey Kahne (16th) and even, presumably, the hard-luck Logano (20th). Heading into this Sunday's race at Watkins Glen, it's not far-fetched to say it's too late for road-course specialists Juan Montoya (21st) and Marcos Ambrose (23rd) -- or even A.J. Allmendinger (17th but never a race winner in NASCAR) to become part of the wild-card conversation. But they have to win, not just finish strong, at The Glen.

And what about two of the sport's giants who currently are hanging on in the top 10 in points but have yet to win races? There are only two -- Tony Stewart in ninth and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 10th. Neither is assured a Chase spot just yet and will be in trouble in the wild-card scenario if they fall out of the top 10 and don't have a victory.

Keselowski said it best following his win Sunday. No one outside of the top six to eight in the current points standings is assured of anything yet.

"I think winning two races is probably really good for our Chase hopes, gives us pretty high odds if we were playing poker," Keselowski said. "But nothing is 100 percent until it's 100 percent. So there are lots of races left. We have to keep plugging away. Maybe if we keep running like this, maybe we can get a third win and we'll be damn near immune, unless we fall out of the top 20."

There are so many variables, so many unknowns. With five races left until the Chase, there are more names being thrown about as having a legitimate shot at a championship than in years. For if a guy like Keselowski can win multiple races to get in -- even on a broken ankle -- who's to say for certain what can or can't happen next?

And quite honestly, that's pretty darn cool.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.

Related:
Head2Head: Will current top 10 remain in the top 10 after RIR?
 
I just have to say that this is pretty impressive. Yes, there have been more impressive performances than this, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this took some serious testicular fortitude.

I'm pretty sure it was Ricky Rudd who once raced through severe burns to his back that kept getting worse as the race wore on. That was pretty impressive.

Jack Youngblood playing an entire playoff game on a broken leg, and many other examples of football players playing through injuries, are probably more impressive, but that ankle had to be just killing him every time he hit the brakes or clutch with that foot. That ankle looked hideous in the pics I saw. He gets much respect from me. :beerbang:
 
He's lucky he caught that caution in the end.

Unlucky yellow with a big lead at Indy, lucky with a yellow at Pocono. It all evens out if your up there competing for wins. Hes still due one, because Kahne took a sure win away in the Coke 600.
 
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