The "Real" IRONMAN: Brad Keselowski

Brad Keselowski wade some waves at Pocono Raceway with his second NASCAR Sprint Cup victory of the season.  Oh right, and he won with a broken ankle!

Despite smashing into a cement wall at over 100 miles per hour and having to be air-lifted out of Road Atlanta on Wednesday, nothing was going to stop Keselowski from driving the No. 2 Miller Dodge.

Yes, Keselowski considered himself “a lucky guy to have walked away” from Wednesday‘s incident.In the next five weeks, Keselowski will be fighting for a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. 

Sunday’s win elevated Keselowski three positions in the points standings to 18th place. It’s the first time that Keselowski has been in the top 20 this season and makes him eligible for one of the two wild-card positions in the Chase.

And given a second chance, Keselowski made the most of his time, beating every other driver in the Sprint Cup Series.

When asked about his broken ankle, Keselowski said, “Whenever I got in the car and felt like, 'This hurts, I don't want to do this, I want to get out,' that was good inspiration on what it means to man up and make it happen, because it's really not that bad.”

Keselowski started 13th on Sunday but quickly moved into the top 10. During pit stops on Lap 102, Paul Wolfe called for four tires and Keselowski restarted 10th on Lap 105.

When the race restarted on Lap 131, Keselowski and teammate Kurt Busch stayed out and lined up for the final set of green flag racing.  The track position enabled Keselowski to remain in contention. Although Kyle Busch had the lead, Jimmie Johnson battled him for position and Keselowski assumed the lead and sped off to the finish.

In the next five weeks, Keselowski will be fighting for a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. 

“Going in the right direction with this (No.) 2 team, and proud of everyone on the Miller Lite Dodge Charger, this is a big win for us.”

Brad Keselowski and his broken left ankle persevered over 500 miles to beat 43 other drivers and get perhaps one of the most impressive NASCAR victories in recent memory.  Most people would welcome a broken ankle as an excuse to sit around and enjoy being lazy.  

However, excuses are not a large part of Brad Keselowski's modus operandi and he uses a broken ankle as even more motivation to climb his way into the Chase.