NASCAR Driver Brad Keselowski Criticizes Next Gen car, Says He Has too ‘Drive It Stupid’
CONCORD, NC – Veteran NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski has voiced strong criticism of the Next Gen car introduced in 2022, stating the vehicle requires a fundamentally different driving style adn feels like an “old pickup truck.” The 41-year-old driver shared his frustrations on the Stacking Pennies Podcast with Corey LaJoie, highlighting a meaningful decline in his on-track success since the car’s implementation.
Prior to the 2022 season, Keselowski had secured 35 Cup Series race wins. Though,he has only managed one win in the four subsequent years. He attributes this downturn to the challenges presented by the Next Gen car, which features a reduced horsepower output of 670.
“Well, the Next Gen car changed me in some ways for worse as a driver because you have to drive it way differently,” Keselowski explained. “You know, the cars in 2008, 2009, first off, were considerably faster. I don’t know if I can put into terms how much faster thay were than the next Gen car.”
Keselowski described the current car as more arduous to handle, contrasting it with the vehicles he drove earlier in his career. “Yes. Absolutely. Much more difficult to drive,” he said. He recalled being able to “spin the tires off the corner” in previous generations of Cup Series cars, a technique now impractical even on restarts. “Now, you can’t spin the tires on a restart. Like you like restart.I’m in the zone. Mash it. Like, all right, here it goes. But you know what I meen? Like I’m in an old pickup truck.”
He further elaborated that previous cars demanded precise throttle control, while the Next Gen car favors a more aggressive, ”smash the pedal” approach. “So, it’s different because the other cars that I raced, throttle control was paramount. Like, if you didn’t have it, you’re going to the back fast. And this car, it’s like the antithesis of that was like you got to like just smash the pedal.Like, smash it. And I think that that’s been hard for me personally. I have to remind myself to like, ‘oh, just drive it stupid,’ you know?”
Keselowski, a co-owner of Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, also expressed a preference for higher horsepower, noting that drivers accustomed to the newer style struggled when tire wear at races like Bristol forced a return to throttle control. He believes younger drivers who have never experienced cars requiring finesse are at an advantage with the current vehicle.
Keselowski’s criticism joins that of other prominent drivers, including Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, and Joey Logano, who have also expressed concerns about the Next Gen car’s performance and handling.
