Denny Hamlin: No one is jealous of Brad Keselowski

Jealousy is not the reason for the animosity expressed towards Brad Keselowski, say the two men who’ve recently taken issue with the Team Penske driver.

Two weeks ago Matt Kenseth attacked Keselowski from behind following the race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Denny Hamlin was also outraged with Keselowski and tried confronting him in the Charlotte garage before being restrained by crew members.

Keselowski was fined $50,000 by NASCAR following the Charlotte race -- for hitting Kenseth on pit road. Neither Kenseth nor Hamlin was penalized.

Keselowski’s car owner, Roger Penske, believes those outbursts stem from jealousy. Keselowski won the 2012 Sprint Cup championship, owns a series-best six victories and is considered among the title favorites this season.

However, Kenseth disagrees with Penske’s assessment. In fact, Kenseth respects Keselowski’s ability; he just takes exception to his antics -- in and out of the car.

“I’m not jealous of Brad at all,” Kenseth told reporters Tuesday. “Certainly, I don’t agree with things that he says or does at times. But I actually really admire Brad’s work ethic, how he got to where he was at. He got here the old-fashioned way, working hard.

“He works harder than most people work at it and tries harder, and that’s a lot of the reason for his success. I’m certainly not jealous of that. I actually admire that part of him.”

Known for his outspoken nature, Keselowski has a history of ruffling feathers. A year ago, he drew the ire of Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, accusing the organizations of poaching key Penske personnel. Rick Hendrick responded saying Keselowski was “misinformed” and needed “more class” in representing the sport as a champion.

“I think sometimes Brad says and does things that create some of his own kind of feedback coming back to him,” said Jeff Gordon, a Hendrick driver.

And even before he was a full-time Cup competitor, Keselowski had a history of becoming engaged in feuds. At one point both Hamlin and Carl Edwards became so enraged with Keselowski they each intentionally spun him out -- Hamlin in a 2009 Nationwide Series race, Edwards the following year in a Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which sent Keselowski airborne into the catch fence.

“There is nobody jealous of Brad,” Hamlin said Tuesday. “Nobody wants to be Brad.”

Not everyone agrees. Although he doesn’t have a personal grudge, Gordon does think there are some drivers who are resentful of Keselowski and that may be a contributing factor to the hostility directed his way.

“I’m sure there is (jealousy),” Gordon said. “I don’t have a problem with Brad. I respect Brad. I think he’s done a tremendous job. I think what he did on Sunday was extremely impressive.”

Gordon is impressed with Keselowski’s skills -- most recently, a stirring victory Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway, a race Keselowski had to win to advance in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

But as impressive as Keselowski was winning, his success hasn’t resonated with fans. During driver introductions Sunday, he was loudly booed.

Not that being disliked bothers Keselowski any.

“My No. 1 goal in racing was never to be the most popular driver,” Keselowski said. “It’s a goal that I have, but it’s not a priority. My goal is to win races and to achieve the highest level of success on the race track possible.”