The recently concluded YellaWood 500 at Talladega came with a series of surprises in store for the fans. One such surprise was Michael McDowell’s second pole position of the 2025 campaign as he turned in a lap of 182.466 mph in the No. 71 Spire Motorsports entry.

The second surprise was the sudden fall-off of the Team Penske cars in the race’s final stage after they had been vying for the win throughout the day. What really caused the powerhouse squad’s surprising collapse? Was Brad Keselowski at fault, or was there more going on? While the two events seem to have nothing in common, the reality is much different.

Is Brad Keselowski Really To Be Blamed for Team Penske’s Talladega Downfall?

Champions of the Cup series for the last three years, Ryan Blaney (2023) and Joey Logano (2022, 2024), dominated the Talladega race for most of the race, running in a strong position for the race win. They were P2 and P3 in the race’s final stage before everything fell apart inexplicably.

Their pace fell rapidly; they were outside the top 15 before they knew it. Initially, it was deemed a fault on Keselowski’s part, who did not push from behind. Team Penske accused the RFK co-owner of saving gas during the race by running on half throttle.

However, speaking on the latest episode of the “Dale Jr. Download” podcast, Keselowski’s spotter, TJ Majors, revealed that McDowell caused Penske’s downfall.

Per Majors, once the No. 34 went clear on the outside, there was no coming back.

“The biggest mistake here is them letting the 34 get clear on the outside. From the time we took off, there was no lifting. Brad gets to Joey. He doesn’t lift…The only time that we start having to manage it is when we’re fourth in line on the bottom.”

He added, “The reason why the inside lane was fading once the 34 got there is because the 34 had not been up front all day. Yeah. He could not manage the gaps as good as Blaney and Joey could, and Brad that one time. He didn’t know. He’s not as refined at backing up and getting the push at the right spots.”

Chiming in on the matter, even Dale Earnhardt Jr. was surprised at what happened in Talladega last Sunday. Offering an explanation on Penske’s part, the 51-year-old said they were perhaps surprised at the lack of speed on the inside line.

While the outside line was much more organized, the inside line had a lot of gaps between cars and raced loosely. Meanwhile, Keselowski’s Crew Chief, Jeremy Bullins, clarified that his driver was running full throttle and did not lift to sabotage Team Penske’s race.

Given the situation, McDowell’s statement, “When it comes to playoff contenders, you do think about them at most of the races but not Talladega,” fits perfectly. The veteran did not have the fastest car in terms of race pace, and it showed with a P17 finish.

Nonetheless, the No. 71 driver stayed true to his racing and pushed his car as hard as possible, ultimately resulting in a worrying outcome for Team Penske.