Leaving Hendrick camp would likely mean end for Brad Keselowski at JR Motorsports
Brad Keselowski competes in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for JR Motorsports. // Jeff Robinson, NASCAR Scene
If Brad Keselowski goes to a non-Hendrick Motorsports organization to drive in the Sprint Cup Series, he likely won’t drive for JR Motorsports in the Nationwide Series, JR Motorsports co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. says.
Keselowski has been mentioned as a candidate for a variety of Cup rides but also has said he would like to return to JR Motorsports, if possible.
“He has to decide what he wants to do,” Earnhardt Jr. said Thursday during an appearance in Atlanta to promote the Labor Day race weekend there. “We don’t control his situation. We don’t control the direction he goes next year. … If he does [go Cup racing], it likely will change the opportunity that he has to drive our car because we wouldn’t be able to work in a conflicting relationship if he’s driving for X car owner and we’re a Hendrick car owner and building this new [car of tomorrow] car [for Nationwide].
“I think a lot of the information that we would not want anyone else to know, so we would have to look in new directions.”
Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick, who also co-owns JR Motorsports, has been trying to work on a deal to get Keselowski to one of its affiliates next year. This year, Keselowski is running in seven Cup races for Hendrick and about 10 for Phoenix Racing.
In his second full season as the driver for JR Motorsports, Keselowski is third in the Nationwide Series standings and has two wins in that series this year to go along with the Cup win at Talladega in the Phoenix Racing car.
“Brad is a really good guy,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Our program means a lot to him, and he has a good feeling about his relationship with [crew chief] Tony [Eury] Sr. and the entire team and what they’ve done for him and what he’s done for them.
“They all sort of built this together and made this competitive together, and that is important to him. He’s struggling really what to do. [He thinks about,] 'Should I stay where I’m at, where I enjoy what I’m doing, where I’m winning, where it’s working and where I’ve built branding with my sponsors, or do I try to try to go into the Cup series with several unknowns and make it from there?'”
Earnhardt Jr. said he has confidence that Keselowski will perform well in Cup. So why not just go Cup racing with Keselowski? It’s not that easy, especially because Hendrick would have to divest himself from the team and sponsorship costs would at least double from what Keselowski has in the Nationwide Series.
“It’s really about sponsorship,” Earnhardt Jr. said. “Somebody has to be willing to sit down and fund your program with anywhere from $15-20 million, and that’s just not happening. They’re not walking in the door every day with that kind of money.
“There is no other variable. … How fast or slow we want to do it really has no effect on it because when somebody comes in the door, you’ve got to be either ready to do it or not to do it. We’ve had a couple of conversations with some sponsors, but we haven’t gotten to the next level yet.”
