Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Denny Hamlin claims Brad Keselowski doesn’t get the credit he deserves for his race craft

Originally posted on FirstSportz | By Justin P Joy | Last updated 2/14/24

RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski is one of the leading figures of NASCAR and is among the underrated drivers on the current grid. The 2012 Cup champion, who is 40 years old, has won 35 Cup races. In his 16-year-long career, he locked horns with some of the sport’s biggest names. He is the driver that elevated and established Team Penske Racing in NASCAR.

The 39-time Xfinity Series race winner ended his long-time partnership with Penske before the start of the Next-Gen era and joined RFK Racing as a co-owner/racer. Within two years under his leadership, the team went from a third-tier Ford team to a tier-one team. But his impressive work often got overlooked as he was winless since leaving Penske, while his teammate Chris Buescher has won four races.

Have we seen the best of @keselowski yet?

https://t.co/ibQr0sxVVo pic.twitter.com/vxDTgXtelF
— Dirty Mo Media (@DirtyMoMedia) February 12, 2024

Now Denny Hamlin, whom Keselowski has raced against his whole Cup career, via his podcast, claimed that Keselowski isn’t getting the credit he deserves for his race craft due to the winless streak. Hamlin, who also owns a Cup team (23XI Racing), acknowledged the impressive work the Ford NASCAR legend has done for the team.

He probably doesn't get enough credit for how good he is behind the wheel. He's just really, really good. It just may have not have shown in the win column the last couple of years. So, when you're building an organization, or you're trying to help the technical side of things or the competition side of things, it's a process. I can understand that firsthand, how tough it is for a two car organization or three core organization to go out there and win. Hamlin said via Action Detrimental.

Denny Hamlin believes the best of Brad Keselowski is yet to come

Hamlin went on to point out that Keselowski, who is now approaching the sweet spot of his career, has a lot to offer for NASCAR. He believes the now 40-year-old will show more of his racing and leadership prowess with RFK in the coming years.

So, I think that we still haven't seen, and by the numbers, Brad's probably getting right to his prime, which is almost that 40 number. Is he like 38, 39? I'm not really sure. So, he's getting into that really sweet spot where statistically he's going to be in his prime. So, I think that's 39. Have we even seen the best Brad yet? Hamlin said.

Keselowski will go into the 2024 season with the primary objective of ending his winless streak. He should take advantage of his consistency and look to secure playoff early while also guiding his teammate on the path to success as a veteran.