Following Kyle Busch's untimely passing, questions about his former rival, Brad Keselowski, emerged. One reporter asked if drivers should be more careful about their health.

At the pre-race press conference for the Coca-Cola 600, Brad Keselowski spoke about the demanding nature of a full NASCAR season.

“I'm not a doctor, but I can only speak for myself. Racing season is a very difficult season, you know, it's 38 weekends a year and there's a lot going on, a lot of opportunities to have cycles in your health. I mean, shoot, I broke my leg at the end of last year, beginning of this year, and I had to power through it because that's what the sport requires."

Keselowski referred to the grueling schedule every driver faces. Casual observers often underestimate the physical exertion required to pilot a NASCAR vehicle.

Starting from February at the Daytona 500 all the way through to the Championship race in Phoenix in November, these drivers are on the road. Every single weekend, they run cars with cockpits that have temperatures of up to 130 and 160 degrees Fahrenheit, all the while battling intense G-forces.

Drivers also sustain heart rates ranging from 150 to 170 beats per minute, occasionally peaking above 190. That's why every NASCAR driver tries to ensure their health is in order.

"I think every driver feels that pressure, as most athletes do. It's not unique to NASCAR in that sense. We're all thinking to ourselves, ‘I don't want to be replaced. I love my job, I love the sport,’ and you try to power through it the best you can," Keselowski added.  

At the same time, Keselowski was also asked about Busch's health in the last few weeks.

What Brad Keselowski Observed

Earlier in the same press conference, journalist Steve Reid from AP asked Keselowski if he had noticed that Busch wasn't doing well in the last few weeks.

"Um, yes. I won't go into any specifics but then when he ran the truck race, Friday, I think of last week. Honestly, kind of erased in my mind. I'm not any level of doctor, but I do know the workload with running a double-duty weekend pretty well. Haven't done it myself."

As the sport deals with this loss, the NASCAR president Steve O'Donnell reassured fans that they would do right by Busch's family when asked about if the sport was looking into how drivers take care of themselves.

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest! 

Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar