"That’s how stiff this penalty is" - Bubba Wallace Jr.'s spotter says Brad Keselowski is in a 'must-win situation now'

Brad Keselowski’s Roush Fenway L2-level penalty hit is still the talk of the town as the worst penalty handed to a team this season.

The No. 6 driver will have to carry the penalty burden until the end of the season, which will definitely affect his performance.

Following the penalty, several people have given their thoughts, the latest being none other than Freddie Kraft, Bubba Wallace Jr.’s spotter. Kraft is known for being vocal on issues concerning NASCAR.

Speaking to the Door Bumper Clear podcast, the spotter said:

“Brad Keselowski is in a must-win situation now, in my book you know. He’s too far back and too many guys, he’s over a 100 points out already, and there’s 20 guys between him and the cutoff line now. I mean, there’s Cody Ware, BJ McLeod, David Ragan’s run two races, he’s ahead of Brad in points right now. That’s how stiff this penalty is”

Brad Keselowski left Team Penske at the end of the 2021 season to take over the No. 6 ride of Roush Fenway from Ryan Newman. Despite competing for the team, he is also the co-owner.

Nothing can be more motivating than racing for your own team as you can give it your all. That was the case for the No. 6 driver until he landed in Atlanta. Ahead of Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 in Atlanta, NASCAR conducted their regular inspection as it always does before any race.

Brad Keselowski to face uphill battle on the tracks if appeal is denied

Following several check-ups, NASCAR opted to return Keselowski’s No. 6 car to their Research & Development Center for more assessments. After thorough inspections, NASCAR discovered that Keselowski's team had modified a single-source supplied part of the Next Gen car.

As a result of the infraction, Keselowski was slapped with an L2-level penalty. The penalty will deduct 100 driver points from the No. 6 driver as well as 100 owner points from the team. 10 playoff points will be docked if he makes it to the playoffs.

On Twitter, Bob Pockrass provided an update prior to the COTA event. In his video, he spoke with Keselowski about the penalty. In response to Bob Pockrass, Keselowski stated that:

"He said that he was not focused on whether the team will win his appeal and win and talk about whether he thought they could win it. He indicated that he was not aware of any modification that could result in a penalty at Atlanta."

His crew chief, Matt McCall, was also handed a $100,000 fine and a four-race suspension. However, all is not lost as his hopes now depend on the National Motorsports Appeals Panel after the team filed for an appeal.

If the appeal goes against him, he will have to overcome the disadvantage on the tracks to achieve a reasonable season finish.