Brad Keselowski has plenty of time to set goals as he continues to recover from surgery to repair a broken leg. He has added another to the list, one that will require him to make more than 300 more Cup Series starts.
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The 2012 NASCAR Cup Series champion has circled 900 starts as a milestone that he would like to reach before calling it a career.
"900 starts sounds nice to me," Keselowski posted on X along with a chart detailing the top 10 Cup Series drivers in terms of starts. "Will take about 8 more seasons, Definitely doable. Great broken leg recovery motivation. Thanks to all who've sent this to me."
Top 10 Cup Series drivers in starts
- Richard Petty (1,184)
- Ricky Rudd (906)
- Terry Labonte (890)
- Dave Marcis (883)
- Mark Martin (882)
- Kyle Petty (829)
- Bill Elliott (828)
- Kevin Harvick (826)
- Darrell Waltrip (809)
- Jeff Gordon (805)
Keselowski is currently 35th on the all-time list with 593 Cup Series starts. He is fourth among active full-time drivers. Kyle Busch leads this list at 750. Denny Hamlin (721) and Joey Logano (615) follow. Martin Truex Jr., who retired after the 2024 season, has suited up for 694 Cup Series races.
Can Keselowski reach this milestone? It all depends on how long he wants to keep racing. He estimated it would take eight seasons to hit this number. Motorsports media member Seth Eggert did the math. He said it would take Keselowski until race No. 19 of the 2034 season to reach 900 starts and third on the all-time Cup Series leaderboard.
The veteran driver, who has 36 wins, will turn 42 at the start of the 2026 Cup Series season. If he continues racing until the 2034 season, he will be 50. This is not necessarily too old, considering that Martin raced until the age of 54. He won five races during his age 50 season.
Keselowski will move one step closer to this goal with the season-opening Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 15. Of course, that all hinges on his recovery time. He expects to return to the No. 6 RFK Racing Ford Mustang by the crown jewel race. He just has to make it happen.
