DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- When Brad Keselowski was asked who he thought was the best driver in NASCAR, his response wasn’t Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart, each of whom is a multi-time Sprint Cup champion. Nor was it defending titlist Kevin Harvick.
Brad Keselowski names Carl Edwards best NASCAR driver
Carl Edwards was atop Brad Keselowski’s list of the best active NASCAR drivers.
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And Keselowski, the 2012 Cup champ, didn’t name himself, either. Instead Keselowski selected Carl Edwards, who’s won 23 races but has yet to capture a premier series championship.
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“I have seen what Carl has done in cars that didn’t have the speed,” Keselowski said during Daytona 500 Media Day. “He has a very diverse skill set. He has been able to win at tracks like Sonoma (a road course) and has won at every type of track.
“I feel like he does the best job of any driver I have seen out there at taking a car that is not fast and finding speed out of it. I think when the times have come that he has had dominant cars he has showed dominant performances, which is what you have to do. He has kind of shown to me, the skill set at every level to be a top driver.”
In spite of Roush Fenway being in the midst of a downswing, Edwards won two races and advanced to the third round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup. This season he moves to Joe Gibbs Racing, a partnership Keselowski expects to make Edwards a championship contender.
“It would not surprise me if they were the team to beat this year,” Keselowski said. “There is something about those new teams. Magic comes together.”
Completing his list of the three best active drivers, Keselowski said Harvick was second with himself third.
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