AVONDALE, Ariz. -- Brad Keselowski met with NASCAR officials, including chairman Brian France, Sunday morning at Phoenix International Raceway, following the latest dust-up on the track between Keselowski and driver Denny Hamlin during Saturday's Nationwide race.
Hamlin hit Keselowski on a restart, and Keselowski retaliated by hitting Hamlin twice. The second hit wrecked Hamlin's car, and he has indicated he would get even in next week's Nationwide race at Miami-Homestead.
"It went real well. That's probably the most impressed I've ever been with NASCAR. I honestly will say that and I'm not brainwashed in saying that, either," said Keselowski, who will drive full-time in the Cup series for Penske Racing next season.
"I really respected the fact Brian France walked in there. That was really the first time I've ever had a conversation with him. I think that's a good sign for the sport that he was involved in that conversation."
Keselowski said he wasn't going to go into details about things that were "talked about privately" but wanted to give an overview of the situation.
"It was [about] just trying to pick and choose who you want to be your friends and enemies in this sport and making sure I understood that process and what it takes to make it to this level," he said.
Driver announcement coming?: Chip Ganassi has had a seat to fill since July, when Martin Truex Jr. said he would vacate the No. 1 Chevrolet to drive for Michael Waltrip Racing next season.
Ganassi vowed to take his time replacing Truex, and has. With one week left in the season, he's yet to announce a replacement.
That could change next week, though. Ganassi said before Sunday's race that he should be able to discuss the Earnhardt Ganassi Racing lineup next week.
Although Ganassi declined to discuss specifics, he's expected to reunite with Jamie McMurray, who left his team to drive for Roush Fenway Racing in 2006. But Roush has to cut a team at the end of the year to meet NASCAR's four-car cap, and McMurray is his only driver in a contract year.
No Danica deal ... yet?: Rick Hendrick says he has no deal to bring IndyCar superstar Danica Patrick to NASCAR, and there's no certainty she will even be driving stock cars next season.
"I just think that they are not even close to making a decision on whether to even do it this year or next year," Hendrick said of Patrick and her representatives at IMG.
"You never know until it's done. You never know until it's signed. And anybody can change their mind. When you get down to the nitty gritty of any deal, it's always complicated. There can always be someone who comes back and says, 'I can't do it because of this.' So until it's done, it's not done. And that's the honest truth."
Patrick is reportedly in the final stages of a contract that would partner her on a limited Nationwide Series schedule with JR Motorsports, the team owned by both Hendrick and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Pre-race accident: A van carrying crew members for Dale Earnhardt Jr. was involved in an accident outside Phoenix International Raceway on Sunday morning.
No one was injured, although some of the crewmen went to the infield medical center for evaluation.
The Associated Press
