BRISTOL, Tenn. – Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series superstar Brad Keselowski will shut down his Brad Keselowski Racing (BKR) team at the end of the 2017 Camping World Truck Series season.
“The Truck Series is truly special to me given my family’s ties to the history of the sport, and this decision comes with much contemplation,” Keselowski said. “But, for a number of reasons, and as I plan for the long-term future, I’ve decided not to field a team in 2018.”
Keselowski, who currently fields the only two full-time Fords on the circuit, has earned nine wins as an owner since he started operating the team part-time in 2008. The Statesville, N.C.-based team which has about 50 employees currently is home to rookies Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric.
The team which went full-time in 2011 with then driver Parker Kligerman is still winless after 14 races this season, but Briscoe and Cindric are in the top-10 in the championship standings sitting fourth and 10th overall respectively.
Keselowski, a third generation racer formed BKR in an effort to give back to the sport has repeatedly mentioned that he loses more than $1 million annually on his truck program. BKR whose final race will come in the Ford 200 at Homestead-Miami (Fla.) Speedway in November will be the second powerhouse organization to fold this year, as Tom DeLoach’s Red Horse Racing suspended operations following the Charlotte Truck Series race in May.
Keselowski’s father Bob was a longtime owner in the series until ceasing operations in 2005.
In 287 starts, BKR has earned nine wins with four different drivers (Ryan Blaney, Keselowski, Joey Logano and Tyler Reddick). They have also finished second in the championship twice, first with Blaney in 2014 and then a year later with Reddick in 2015.
Today, a few young drivers have also used Keselowski’s team as a path in their careers.
Reddick and Daniel Hemric drove for the company last year and both have advanced into the XFINITY Series. Blaney has continued his climb up the Penske ladder and is now a full-time competitor in the Cup Series with Team Penske partner Wood Bros. Racing.
“My goal with BKR was to create a top-tier team which would allow me to give back to the sport by creating opportunities and quality experience for others, whether they be drivers, mechanics, engineers, or support personnel,” added Keselowski.
“With outstanding leadership from BKR’s GM Jeremy Thompson, assistance from Team Penske, and the support of our long-time partners Cooper Standard and Horizon Global, we were able to successfully achieve this goal. I am very proud of this and intend to do my best to help my BKR team members stay and grow in the sport. I am also incredibly appreciative of the great relationships we have developed with our partners over the years.”
Shortly after the announcement, Keselowski published a blog about the decision. He explained having to tell his employees he was shutting down the two-truck team was “one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done.”
The 2013 NASCAR Cup Series champion went on to share how tenure driving for Roger Penske at Team Penske has shaped his outlook on the future.
“One of the things I’ve learned from Roger Penske is the importance of having a successful core business outside of motorsports,” wrote Keselowski. “If you have a successful business venture outside of motorsports, you can kind of roll with the ebbs and flows of the sport as an owner. That’s the position I want to be in, and that I’ll need to be in to be an owner who lasts in NASCAR.”
Keselowski’s void will leave Kyle Busch as the only NASCAR Cup driver who also owns a truck team. Both Keselowski and Busch have used their truck platforms to help provide their manufacturers and Cup teams with a place not only to train personnel but shape young drivers.
Keselowski, a native of Rochester Hills, Mich. native said he hopes to one-day field cars in the NASCAR Cup Series and this change is part of that plan.
“I’ve never made it a secret that I would eventually like to be an owner at the top level of the sport,” Keselowski said. “And, while this is many years down the line, I want to start to
prepare for that possibility now.
“Part of that preparation is seeking to develop an advanced engineering and manufacturing company that would be housed out of our 78,000-square-foot facility in Statesville [North Carolina] and ultimately help to support this vision.”
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
