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NASCAR Insider Austin Konenski reminisced about the 2014 season, including the infamous brawl between Jeff Gordon and Brad Keselowski. In an X post, Konenski said he missed the energy during those times.
The brawl stemmed from an on-track incident on a restart at Texas Motor Speedway. Gordon, driver of the #24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, was hit by the #2 Team Penske Ford of Keselowski before sustaining damage and blowing a tire.
Describing his feelings about the 2014 NASCAR Cup Series season on an X post with the Gordon-Keselowski off-track altercation, Austin Konenski wrote:
"I miss the energy of the 2014 NASCAR season. It wasn’t solely this fight either. What happened 💔."
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At the time, NASCAR introduced a new playoff format that divided the 10 postseason races into four rounds through elimination. While the rounds were called Challenger, Contender, and Eliminator back then, these are known today as the Round of 16, Round of 12, and Round of 8.
The Texas race in question was part of the Eliminator (Round of 8). As such, Jeff Gordon was frustrated with Brad Keselowski because his championship hopes were affected. He finished 29th in the 2014 AAA Texas 500 before being out of contention for the championship.
Kevin Harvick brought home the championship in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He beat title contenders Ryan Newman, Denny Hamlin, and Joey Logano for his first championship and second for Stewart-Haas Racing following Tony Stewart's championship-winning season in 2011.
Jeff Gordon retired from full-time competition the following year, giving Chase Elliott the seat of the #24 Chevrolet. He concluded his Cup career with four championships and 93 race wins.
"I missed the restart": Jeff Gordon owned up to crash with Brad Keselowski nine years later
In an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio in 2023, Jeff Gordon admitted the crash with Brad Keselowski at Texas Motor Speedway was his fault. The now 53-year-old said he missed the restart, allowing Keselowski to move and pass him.
The former #24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet pilot said:
"Honestly, it was on me. I missed the restart. He (Brad Keselowski) did exactly what he should've done. He filled the gap. It's not like just slammed me. He's filling the gap, I'm trying to block the gap." [0:43]
He also shared his emotions after missing the restart, adding:
"That was just me mainly being angry at the situation... and also angry at myself. I do go back through those situations. I missed the shift at Pocono years ago leading the race. There were a bunch of things that you go, 'Okay, 93 wins, that's amazing. That's awesome. Hmm, could've been a hundred, maybe.'"
The 2014 AAA Texas 500 witnessed then-Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson score his 70th of 83 Cup wins. Kevin Harvick came home second, followed by Brad Keselowski in third.
Gordon's final win came at Martinsville Speedway in 2015 before retiring at the end of the season. The four-time champ returned to HMS as vice chairman seven years later. He now looks after the Concord-based outfit, currently fielding William Byron, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, and Alex Bowman.
