Savage Riley Herbst Fires Back At Brad Keselowski Over Daytona 500 Rant

Riley Herbst was having none of the criticism from Brad Keselowski and snapped back at him following the Daytona 500 controversy.

Savage Riley Herbst Fires Back At Brad Keselowski Over Daytona 500 Rant

The Big One at Daytona (via NASCAR), Riley Herbst (via NASCAR)

The Daytona 500 ended in a massive disappointment for many of the drivers, especially after being caught in the big one. Brad Keselowski was one of the many who lost his winning chances because of the crash. However, the RFK Racing star believed that Riley Herbst was to blame and criticized him heavily. Now, Herbst isn’t mincing his words and has responded brutally to Keselowski.

Brad Keselowski remained unimpressed by his P4 finish at the Daytona 500. He believed that he had a realistic shot at winning and ending his winless streak if it weren’t for Riley Herbst. Keselowski claimed that Herbst’s move was one of the dumbest things he’d ever seen in his career.

Now, Riley Herbst hasn’t remained quiet on the critical comments and has since responded to Brad Keselowski. Herbst revealed that RFK Racing star hadn’t reached out to him, and accepted that people remained emotional while racing on track. The 23XI Racing driver accepted that he wasn’t delighted with how the race ended either, as he had a good shot at winning.

He hasn’t reached out to me. I understand that everybody has emotions, I was pretty upset after the race as well, not only because I had a shot to win it, and it didn’t unfold the way I wanted to, but that if I made a different move, I could have finished, theoretically, at worst, third. But I risked it all to try to win the race, and I finished eighth. So I was very upset, too.

Riley Herbst said on the Gluckcast podcast.

Riley Herbst showed class in the matter and accepted that Brad Keselowski said some things in the heat of the moment and had every right to feel the way he did. However, Herbst believed that it was a bit over the top to claim that it was the most egregious move he’d ever seen in his career. The #35 recalled that he grew up watching Keselowski racing on track and might have learned the move from him.

People say things when they are in the heat of the moment. He has every right to feel the way he does. But to say that’s the most egregious thing he’s ever seen, I feel like that’s a bit of a stretch. I grew up watching him race on plate tracks as well. I kind of maybe learned it from him, or who knows.

Riley Herbst added.

Riley Herbst claims Atlanta race ‘closest’ to old Daytona

The AutoTrader 400 in Atlanta is up next, and teams will take the grand circus to the upcoming circuit. Meanwhile, doubts continue to linger over the uneven tire wear at the circuit. To battle this, Goodyear will introduce a new right-side tire to battle the uneven wear, which they have done in the past as well. Now, Riley Herbst opens up on the change and how Atlanta’s race is probably the most reminiscent of iconic Daytona racing.

Riley Herbst (via Imagn)
Riley Herbst (via Imagn)

Initially, Riley Herbst claimed that it was above his pay grade to speak on the matter. However, he reckoned that the tires continued to wear a lot at Atlanta, and the change was good. Herbst added that currently, Atlanta was the closest to old Daytona, which many people dreamed about. Ultimately, the 23XI Racing star wanted the fans to enjoy the race and hoped that the tires would help improve racing more than the previous year.

No, that’s above my pay grade, I do know that Atlanta continues to wear, so that’s cool. I think people reach and dream for old Daytona, and I think Atlanta’s the closest thing you have to it right now. I hope fans enjoy the race. I think tires will mean more than they did last year, like they did the previous year. 

Riley Herbst noted.

The 2026 season has been very interesting so far, especially because of the season opener race being so dramatic and ending in controversy. The season has just begun, and it is looking promising to deliver even better contingencies in the upcoming races. For now, Brad Keselowski and Riley Herbst aim not to go through yet another controversial situation and maximize their winning chances.

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