Edwards, Keselowski to meet with NASCAR brass (cont'd)

Keselowski, who has earned all kinds of criticism from other competitors due to his aggressive driving style, said he has one specific area he wants to address -- NASCAR's edict of "have at it, boys," which when it was announced in January seemed to encourage contact. "That will be my question when I get to meet with them," he said. "That's something we're all trying to understand, and it's a real work in progress."

Friday, the two drivers could not have offered more of a contrast. Keselowski was his usual irreverent self, nearly spitting out a sip of water when he was informed of the recent sniping between Edwards and another old rival, Kevin Harvick. Edwards, though, seemed clearly weighed down by the entire episode, and like so many drivers in the garage area appeared eager to put the saga behind him.

“

I think Brad needs to know that there are a lot of guys he has rubbed the wrong way. ... you just don't turn off a garage area as fast as he has for no good reason.

”

-- JIMMIE JOHNSON

"I didn't need a weekend off with all the drama. It's tough, man. It's amazing. I guess the racing is the thing I love the most about the sport," he said after Sprint Cup qualifying. "... You've got to be mentally tough. I think a football player said it best. Last week's last week. Just go do your job. That's the definition of being mentally tough. I could've used a race last weekend. It's good to be back at the race track."

In the days since their altercation, neither driver has exactly come across as apologetic. Keselowski, who has had his share of run-ins with other drivers, has reiterated that he's not going to change his driving style -- even choosing Tom Petty's "Won't Back Down" as his song for driver introductions prior to Sunday's race. Other drivers like it when the focus is on him, he said, because "it diverts attention from their own troubles, and it puts more pressure on me. It's like you're trying to tear somebody else's house down in order to build your own. I understand it. I think if they had really legitimate gripes, they'd come up and say something."

Edwards has stood equally as firm. Shortly after the incident he posted a statement on his Facebook page referring to the "code" he lives by, and on Friday morning reaffirmed those convictions.

"Glad to talk with Brad about it," he told reporters, "... but once it affects, say, my business, my team, all that stuff, I have to address it. That's it. It's no deeper than that. It's only between him and I and what happens on the race track."

In the aftermath of the Atlanta incident, it's clear that both drivers have reputations that are in need of some mending. Harvick, who's fought his own battles with Edwards in the past, called the Roush Fenway driver "a fake" in a recent radio appearance. And Keselowski's brash, unrepentant style behind the wheel clearly bothers some of his fellow competitors.

"I think Brad needs to know that there are a lot of guys he has rubbed the wrong way," four-time champion Jimmie Johnson said. "I think he needs to stay true to who he is, and I do respect that. But you go through the garage area, and he has for whatever reason turned the garage against him. If I were in his shoes, I would be working hard to correct that. At the same time ... he's got to stand up for what he thinks is right for him and his race team. But you just don't turn off a garage area as fast as he has for no good reason. He's got to work on that."

Johnson added that he hasn't had any personal run-ins with Keselowski, but senses an "overall brewing discussion" about the driver in the garage area.

"You come into the sport at the top level, especially as a rookie, and like it or not, you're going to take a few lumps before you're oven that opportunity to pass some out," Johnson said. "I think he's come in, and he's passed out more than he's taken. A lot of people view that as great. A lot of people view that as the opposite."

Which may explain why Keselowski says not many drivers have personally complained to him. He said one of the few interactions he's had with other Sprint Cup competitors since Atlanta has been with Jeff Gordon, who shared his own trials as a young driver and told the rookie that nobody gets through without experiencing tough times. Other than that?

"The only time I really talk to other drivers is when I bump into them," said Keselowski, whose left hand was bandaged Friday because of blisters. "Nobody really reached out to me. I've tried talking to a few of them, and they didn't seem all that interested, to be honest, even the ones I didn't feel like I had done anything to make them mad. I think everybody's just trying to get over everything."

On that, he and Edwards may very well agree. Saturday morning's meeting may go a long way toward determining whether it actually happens. "I hope everything's OK. I hope everybody walks out and feels like it's done," Keselowski said. "I'm really watching and listening. I don't have any preconceived notions."

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• Bristol a place to settle scores | Track Smack
• Edwards placed on probation | BK won't change