Brad Keselowski knows a thing or two about aggressive driving. A decade ago, he was known across the garage for it. But over a decade later, the Michigan native has found some perspective on his aggression, and he sees some of it in Carson Hocevar.

During a recent interview with Jeff Gluck, the RFK co-owner weighed in on the comparison between his early days and Hocevar. 

While answering one of the wild card questions on The Athletic's '12 questions with Jeff Gluck', the NASCAR reporter questioned the No. 6 RFK driver: whether he sees himself in Carson Hocevar and if the comparison is fair.

"I see some parallels there from the time I went to Penske, when they really weren’t respected in NASCAR," Keselowski said in the interview. "Spire is in that same category, where they haven’t been respected for a long time and are trying to be respected, and they’re with a driver who is pushing them to the limit."

Now this isn't too far off from a young Keselowski we saw in the early 2000s. He had incidents with Denny Hamlin and Matt Kenseth on the track, as well as an altercation with Jeff Gordon off track.

But even then, drivers called him reckless or out of control; Keselowski stood his ground. His 2012 Cup Series title proved the same. It was the first ever title Penske had won in the Cup Series, and it kicked off a run that saw them win four more in the next 10 years.

Similarly, Keselowski believes Hocevar is putting Spire on the map with his antics. Over the 2026 season, Carson Hocevar has had multiple run-ins with his fellow drivers. The most recent one was with the Front Row Motorsports driver Zane Smith, where the two drivers made contact on Lap 32 during the race at Chicagoland Speedway. Legends and rookies alike have talked about his aggressive driving style.

Yet, there have been positive moments from the driver. His win at Talladega gave Spire its second win since the rain-shortened race at Talladega in 2019. And while Hocevar's odds at winning the title may be low, he is still seventh in the standings with 598 points.

Addressing the similarities further, Keselowski acknowledged there were similarities between the two drivers while also stressing that the No. 77 driver was carving a path of his own. 

"So yeah, I can see some similarities. But every driver writes his own path. I hate to say I don’t think it’s fair to compare, but I don’t. There are different things, and he’s cutting his path in his own way. It’s not fair to him as much as it’s not fair to anyone else."

In any case, comparisons such as these are bound to happen, just as they did when Keselowski gained his reputation as an aggressive driver.

When Rusty Wallace compared Brad Keselowski to Dale Earnhardt Sr

During the 2014 season, when Keselowski drove for Roger Penske’s Team Penske, he had several run-ins with his fellow drivers. So much so that during the race at Texas that same year, his crew got into a pit road brawl with Jeff Gordon and his crew after a move made by Keselowski caused Gordon to spin out. 

While his on-track behaviour earned a lot of criticism from the drivers, then ESPN Analyst Rusty Wallace drew a comparison between Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Sr. 

"The way [Keselowski’s] been driving of late reminds me of Dale Earnhardt Sr,” Wallace said. (via LA Times)

Dale Earnhardt Sr., also known as the 'Intimidator,' was known to move drivers out of his way. Yet again, this marks another similarity between Keselowski’s younger days and Carson Hocevar, who has also been compared to Dale Earnhardt Sr. 

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!

Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco