Brad Keselowski Wins 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship

It was kind of an anticlimactic end, but Brad Keselowski became a first time NASCAR champion on Sunday. Jimmie Johnson’s car gave up its ghost with a little over 40 laps to go, which meant that his title hopes ended.

Fans in the stands applauding. They know it’s over. Brad Keselowski is your 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion.

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) November 18, 2012

I was not expecting to see the championship end like this.  It looked like Keselowski made a major mistake by getting off sequence but it did not matter in the end.  Johnson ended up having a loose lugnut, which put him behind the eight ball.  After that, he came back in a couple of laps later as his car gave up.  It was not the best way to end the title chase, but it works.

A lot of fans are happy that there is some fresh blood that won the title.  Johnson would have won his sixth title this year and a lot of people would have been upset by that.  He is a great driver but he still has not won over a lot of the fans.  It sucks for him, but sometimes the equipment just gives up.

I expect to see Brad in contention for titles for years to come.  His team has it all figured out and he only gotten better as the season went on.  If that keeps up, he is going to win more titles.  This may have just been the first one for him.