A few days ago, Brad Keselowski spoke to Matt Weaver and opened up on the OEM politics. He talked about how the OEMs didn’t do much to save smaller teams from shutting shop. The biggest victim of this was Furniture Row Racing, which had actually won the championship the year before it went under. Another thing he touched upon was how Toyota treated its customer teams better than Ford or Chevrolet did with their customers. Needless to say, that caught the interest of Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Dale Earnhardt Jr spoke about what Brad Keselowski really wanted

In an episode of the Dale Jr Download, he and co-hosts TJ Majors and Travis Rockhold discussed his comments. Specifically, they talked about the comments pertaining to Toyota. According to Dale Jr, 23XI Racing simply pays Joe Gibbs Racing a lot of money to have a decent relationship. Majors acknowledged that the three parties work well together, and it is clearly visible. A large part of it is thanks to Denny Hamlin. Owing to his efforts, Joe Gibbs Racing feels like a 7-car team. Sure, 23XI Racing does pay for the information and technology, but a lot of performance is shared.

Dale Jr told the Dale Jr Download, “I think that Brad is trying to- Brad’s using the media as leverage to try to get Ford to react in the manner that he wants them to react. Brad isn’t trying to change anything about what Toyota does. He’s only trying to use the media to say, so Ford will hear it and go, ‘Hmm, maybe we need to do something to make this better.’ I’ve noticed Brad over the last several weeks get more and more vocal about this. He’s getting a little more frustrated with the lack of progress that they’re trying to make to close the gap. I think that’s him being savvy, because that’s what you do. If the conversation behind closed doors isn’t working, or you feel like it’s not working, you’ll go in that media centre and you’ll make it known. You’ll go use that media center to your advantage, if you can.”

What’s happening is that Keselowski is fairly frustrated, both as a driver and a team owner. He had warned that the new power dynamic that the OEMs enjoyed allowed them to create a sort of tier list. These lists showed all the teams under their respective umbrellas, and all were ranked from top priority to the least. So when the funds are distributed, the top teams get the lion’s share, and the rest is trickled down to the lower-tier teams.

How have 23XI Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing changed things?

Once again, the answer to this is Denny Hamlin. Since he is a Joe Gibbs Racing driver and the co-owner of 23XI Racing, the chances of a collaboration were higher. Brad Keselowski is also a fellow NASCAR Cup Series driver-owner, but there is one crucial difference. The #6 driver is actually driving for his own team, so there isn’t much chance of a collaboration with another Ford team.

Had he stayed with Team Penske and still co-owned Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, it could have been possible. In a sense, Roger Penske could have potentially been amenable to a collaboration. After all, the 23XI and Joe Gibbs Racing alliance is proving to be fruitful for both parties. The fact that the two teams have found themselves to be championship rivals is a happy accident, but that’s a story for another day.

For Toyota, what makes things a little easier for their wallets is the number of teams in their portfolio. They only have 23XI Racing, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Legacy Motor Club, and even that team has made significant strides. Ford boasts of four teams, namely RFK Racing, Team Penske, Front Row Motorsports, and Wood Brothers Racing. Chevrolet has the most teams, with eight under their belt. Aside from Hendrick Motorsports, the OEM has Richard Childress Racing, Hyak Motorsports, Haas Factory Team, Kaulig Racing, Spire Motorsports, Rick Ware Racing, and Trackhouse Racing.