Stuck in neutral: Former Cup champs Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski looking to change the tide

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch appeared in a "Back to the Future" spoof for NASCAR to celebrate the return of the championship race to Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2026.

The two drivers won their Cup titles at Homestead. Keselowski earned the trophy in 2012. Busch won his in 2015 and 2019. 

These days, they seem as far away from a championship as they have ever been. Even when they show speed, they have found their days ruined. 

Take the race Sunday at Kansas Speedway. Keselowski was running second when he had a flat tire, wrecked and wound up 37th. He sits 33rd in the series point standings. Busch didn’t run as strong as Keselowski but was running 14th when he spun and lost 15 spots. He sits 18th in the standings after his 21st-place finish.

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"Just lots of things not coming together," Keselowski said. "And that's how the sport goes. And you ride the wave, and we're on the bad side of the wave. But we're going to push hard to get to the right side."

Last week, Busch spun on his own while running near the front at Texas. The Kansas wreck occurred as Ross Chastain, Josh Berry and Noah Gragson were all on the outside of him in a four-wide situation where the other three cars pin-balled off each other and into Busch.

Prior to the race, Busch lamented his season, a career in which he has won 63 Cup races, 102 Xfinity races and 67 truck races (232 total).

"You live for those moments of being able to go get it and get a win and boom, we're in the wall [and] we're crashed," Busch said. "I don't know why or what, but I've been rewarded 230-plus times for being able to go get it and go get the win when it comes down to it.

"And now it seems like I get penalized for trying."

Busch appears to have more speed than he did last year, as his winless streak has extended to 68 races.

He admitted he was totally bummed after Texas, and it was tough just coming to Kansas knowing it was the site of a similar incident last fall.

"It depends on how easy your PTSD sets in," Busch said Saturday prior to hitting the wall in qualifying and then the disappointing Sunday. "Coming here, it's probably going to be pretty easy for it to set in, like, ‘Hey, don't do what you did last year.’

"And, of course, coming off of last weekend … you know it's going to be right there in the front of your mind, not necessarily too far back."

For Busch, the spring has become a little bit of a moment of self-reflection. He celebrated his 40th birthday last week and his contract status for 2027 at Richard Childress Racing remains unsettled.

While Busch said 40 "is just a number," some drivers have seen a significant falloff when racing into their 40s.

"I want to just get back to the ways of being competitive and up front and winning races and carry that like Denny [Hamlin] has," Busch said about the 44-year-old Hamlin. "Denny has done a great job. He’s still winning races, winning more than one a year. That’s admirable."

Keselowski is 41 years old and can look at Kansas as a moral victory of sorts, as he has not sniffed the lead much this year. The co-owner of RFK Racing, Keselowski changed his crew chief after last season and has several new crew members on his team.

"When you put yourself in a position like that, you win races," Keselowski said about his Kansas run. "This is a pretty significant overhaul of the [No.] 6 team from where we were last year.

"And there are some pieces that are starting to click and maybe not getting the result. But showing the potential to get the result today was a step forward for us even though the finishing order is not going to show it."

Cup teams have their annual All-Star race next weekend. The next points race is on Memorial Day weekend with the longest event of the season — the 600-miler at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

If either Busch or Keselowski wins it, few would probably be surprised. Both drivers needed grit to win a Cup title and both are used to dealing with the adversity that a 400-lap, 600-mile race can bring.

"Go win the Coke 600. That's where my emotions are at," Keselowski said. "Bring cars and speed like this to the Coke 600 and let’s go win it."

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.