INDIANAPOLIS -- Brad Keselowski started the Brickyard 400 in 26th place after a poor qualifying showing Saturday, and the race itself didn't get off to a much better start. Before Stage 1 had even finished, Keselowski was penalized for a pit exit violation on Lap 41. He sat in 36th place of 39 by the end of the first stage.

He and his RFK Racing crew knew they had to pull out every trick in the book to seize victory.

By the end of Stage 2 50 laps later, Keselowski had climbed 15 spots to 21st place, and quickly made his way up to first place in the final 60 laps. By the time the final 10 laps were underway, it was apparent that Keselowski was running out of fuel, but he and everyone watching knew that a last-minute pit stop would prevent him from winning, even if he later admitted that he was pushing the No. 6 Ford too hard.

"Sort of a double-edged sword stabbing you in both sides," Matt McCall, Keselowski's crew chief, told IndyStar.

The plan was for Keselowski to drive until he ran out of gas, and his crew estimated that would happen right after he crossed the finish line. But a crash on Lap 159 (of a scheduled 160) sent the race to overtime and spoiled Keselowski's plans that would have won him his second Brickyard 400.

Brickyard 400 results: Kyle Larson outlasts two overtimes to capture Brickyard 400 win, promises Indy 500 return

After former Brickyard 400-winner Kyle Busch bumped into Denny Hamlin on Turn 3 of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's oval track, Busch spun into the wall and drew the 10th caution of the day. Keselowski was leading the pack at the time, but his Ford was running on fumes, and he didn't have enough in the tank to complete the ensuing double overtime period without making a pit stop.

Keselowski, McCall and all of the RFK Racing crew knew their chance at victory had passed once the No. 6 Ford plodded its way into pit row for his last stop on the 160th lap of the Brickyard 400.

"Maybe we could have fought it off, maybe not, I would've liked to have seen," Keselowski said afterward. "We have top 10 speed, we're not dominant but we're really competitive. ... We didn't get yellows (flags) when we needed yellows to win today.

"That'll come back to us at some point, and people will say we were really lucky and forget days like today."

Instead of Keselowski bringing home his second Brickyard 400 victory, which would have made him just the seventh person to win multiple, he finished in 21st while Kyle Larson controversially edged out Tyler Reddick and Ryan Blaney to win his first. It took 167 laps for the event to finish, its first time on IMS' oval track since 2020.

With fond memories of the track in mind due to his 2018 win and feeling good about his 35 laps led Sunday, Keselowski doesn't want to forget July 21, 2024.

"It's a good track for me, I like racing here," he told IndyStar.

Keselowski will have to wait until next July to race his preferred oval track again.

Contact Kyle Smedley with comments via email at KSmedley@Gannett.com or via X @KyleSmedley_.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Late-race fuel save issues prevent Brad Keselowski from Brickyard win