Keselowski weighs future options, including Hendrick

The Sprint Cup Series' latest winner, Brad Keselowski, is so effervescent it's hard for him to maintain much of a poker face, but Friday at Richmond International Raceway he remained pretty coy about his future, even in the face of seemingly limitless possibilities.

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Brad Keselowski talks about his future in the Sprint Cup Series, and how he celebrated his Talladega victory.

• Watch Video
• Victory Lane: Talladega
• Final Laps: Talladega

A Hendrick Motorsports spokesman confirmed that team owner Rick Hendrick was "under the weather" this week and had only had limited conversations with Keselowski. The HMS development driver won the Aaron's 499 driving a former Hendrick Chevrolet fielded last weekend by James Finch's Phoenix Racing. The team spokesman also said Hendrick is in a period in which it has the exclusive right to deal with Keselowski.

"Opportunities or situations to make [a full 2010 Cup schedule] work -- I don't think you guys have time to hear them all," Keselowski said. "I've put some thought into it, but not a lot. The basics of it are that we still have a few months to work some other things out. Specifically, I'm working with HMS and owe it to them to see what they can work out. I think the key part about this whole situation of where I'm at with contracts and next year is that you stick with what got you to where you're at.

"Having competitive cars and having support from HMS and being able to look at their data and talk to their drivers is what got me into Victory Lane on Sunday. It's hard to run from that, you know? But at the same time, at this point and at this time, there isn't a clear opportunity there. So we'll have to see how that plays out."

Hendrick currently fields four teams for three-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, four-time champion Jeff Gordon, Keselowski's Nationwide Series boss Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin, who returned this season to drive full-time after two part-time seasons. Martin reportedly is mulling over whether or not to step out of Hendrick's No. 5 car for another part-time schedule next season, or to keep running full time.

Hendrick is part owner of Earnhardt's JR Motorsports, and also fields a part-time No. 25 R&D Chevrolet that Keselowski is scheduled to make a limited number of starts in this season, including next weekend at Darlington Raceway.

Keselowski said he turned down an offer from owner Roger Penske for this season because he didn't think he was ready, but after winning Sunday -- a fact he said he still can hardly believe -- he's beginning to change his mind.

"Well, I'd like to be in Cup full time next year," Keselowski said. "I feel like I've made some progression toward the end of the year last year, and toward the start of this year, to where maybe I'm a 10th- to 20th-place Cup driver. I know that to make that next step, I need to run full time. I need to have a full-time ride at the Cup level to be a guy who can run for the Chase or take wins." (Continued)