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via Imago

via Imago

After 110 painstaking races, Brad Keselowski finally ended his winless streak in the Next-Gen era at Darlington. Despite some claiming that the win was gifted to him by Tyler Reddick and Chris Buescher‘s scuffle, the #6 Mustang driver had been gaining momentum through the past few races.

With that being said, Kevin Harvick doesn’t seem to be too amused by the Rochester Hills native’s comeback. Reflecting on Keselowski’s 1123-day-long absence from Victory Lane, the former RCR star made a shocking revelation.

Did Kevin Harvick rightfully overestimate Brad Keselowski’s NASCAR success?

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Keselowski’s victory at Darlington was significant for various reasons. Apart from ending his winless streak, the #6 RFK Racing driver also brought home his first win as a team owner/driver. That being said, Harvick couldn’t help but highlight how Keselowski’s win tally seemed underwhelming. Speaking on Harvick’s Happy Hour, the FOX analyst asked his co-hosts what their guesses were regarding Keselowski’s total wins.

Although both insiders hit the mark with their guesses, Harvick turned the attention elsewhere. He stated, “You guys guessed a lot lower. I thought he had more wins than that. Personally, I thought that he had won more races…(…)…I looked it up this morning and I just expected that number to be a little bit higher. I don’t know why.”

USA Today via Reuters

This prompted Mamba Smith to jump to Keselowski’s defense with some heavy-hitting facts. The co-host added, “I look at that and I think 30 is a lot,” bringing up the stats of Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex Jr, who both have considerably lower win rates than Keselowski.

In 21 years of Cup Series action, Truex Jr has won 33 races out of 669 runs, placing his win rate at 4.932% (according to MotorsportStats). Ryan Blaney seems to fare even worse, with a win rate of 3.14% and 10 wins out of 318 starts. That being said, Harvick’s stance on Keselowski’s tally may not hold solid ground if we compare both veterans through their careers.

Starting with Kevin Harvick, the SHR and RCR veteran has arguably led one of NASCAR’s most successful campaigns in the modern era. With 60 wins in 825 starts, Harvick has a solid win rate of 7.27%. When compared to Brad Keselowski’s 36 wins with nearly two-thirds of Harvick’s starts (533), his win rate is right next to the FOX Analyst’s 6.75%.

But that’s not the only statistic that shows a parallel in Harvick and Keselowski’s careers. Since all of this was sparked by the RFK Racing owner’s winless streak, it’s worth mentioning that Harvick is no stranger to longer dry stints. While Keselowski’s winless run lasted 110 races, Harvick faced a longer dry spell in the early 2010s. After winning at Daytona in 2007, the former RCR star would only visit victory lane again in 2010 after a winless run of 115 races.

Whatever the critics may say, the Keselowskis enjoyed every moment

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The past few Cup Series seasons have been tumultuous for Brad Keselowski, to say the least. Not bringing home a victory as a team owner and driver didn’t just make fans question his remaining time at the top of NASCAR; it also left the Keselowski family without a taste of victory lane for far too long. So despite Kevin Harvick’s impressions of the RFK Racing owner’s win rate, the Keselowski family left no stone unturned in celebrating the #6’s return to the top step.

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After the Goodyear 400, Brad Keselowski passed on the race-winning flag to his daughter, Scarlett Keselowski. Taking to X, Paige Keselowski shared wholesome insight into how their daughter celebrated the Darlington win. She shared, “No one is happier than this girl. She wanted to take the race-winning flag to school today so her class could use it for the pledge of allegiance.

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In a post that unified the NASCAR community and commended the Keselowskis for their parenting, it was fairly evident that everyone within the Keselowski household was proud of the #6’s achievement. With that being said, Brad Keselowski has been on a steady climb toward victory lane for weeks. Now that he’s finally revisited and added to the glorious memory of Victory Lane, will Keselowski continue to carry Ford’s 2024 campaign?