LAS VEGAS — After one of the most surprising developments of the 2026 NASCAR season, Brad Keselowski and RFK Racing President Chip Bowers provided insight into the circumstances surrounding their separation Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The 2026 season was the final year of a five-year driver contract for Keselowski, who joined the team as a driver and co-owner ahead of the 2022 campaign. Keselowski hoped to continue his driving career in the future, while RFK wanted him to move up to the main competition role more quickly.
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Over the past month, talks between the two sides have broken down and Keselowski’s future has become clearer. At the end of the 2026 season, he will be looking for his next opportunity.
“We wanted to make sure, organizationally, that we were setting ourselves up not only for short-term success, but also for sustainable long-term success,” Bowers told a room full of media members in Las Vegas. “And so when we started thinking about what the next three years would look like for us and beyond, it was clear that we wanted Brad to start focusing more on his competitive role.
“For us, we wanted it to be a natural transition for Brad over the next two or three years. I think he wants to continue driving a lot longer than that, and that’s great. We applaud that. Like I said, we want to give Brad, because we have tremendous respect and appreciation for Brad, every opportunity to do whatever he wants to do in his career. But that’s what makes it so difficult, right? It’s a company, and we just weren’t aligned with that, and that happens We just wanted to focus more on the riding side of things. We figured that out, and that’s why it took us so long to get here.
Keselowski won’t go into specifics about his departure, although he remains grateful for the opportunity to jump into Cup Series ownership with RFK. He doesn’t consider himself sentimental, but he knew he wouldn’t return to the organization in 2027 for the past 30 days.
“It’s been quite an adventure,” Keselowski said in his opening speech, overwhelmed by the media. “I’ve been able to enjoy everything I’ve been able to do with RFK – and my career is by no means over. There’s still a lot to work out. I can’t really go into the details of how we got to where we are at least right now until a few more things develop.”
Bowers said he was surprised the two sides couldn’t come to an agreement to extend Keselowski’s tenure with the organization. He acknowledged there had been no dispute between the 2012 champion and Roush Enterprises and Fenway Sports Group over the direction of the company.
Keselowski wasn’t as perplexed, mentioning, “There are a lot of things that surprise me, but that wasn’t one of them.”
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Keselowski remains interested in being part of an ownership group in the future, saying it is “doubtful” whether this marks the end of his time as a team owner in the sport.
“I still love this sport and I want to be here long after my driving days,” Keselowski said defiantly.
Bowers said a strong foundation has been laid internally to set RFK up for success in the future. He attributes this to Keselowski’s vision for the organization, which helped change the culture internally upon his arrival in 2022.
“We think we’ve gotten to an area where we’ve become more competitive than we have been historically,” Bowers added. “Now is the time to take the next step. We are confident we have the right people to do it and we look forward to adding additional talent to help us get there.”
One of Keselowski’s key hires was driver Ryan Preece ahead of the 2025 season. Preece, who earned his spot in The Chase presented by Mobil 1 during the regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway, considers Keselowski a great teammate and someone who helped New England find his voice. He’s not worried about the change coming at RFK.
“It’s an opportunity to keep building the house, man. It’s not going to be torn down,” Preece said. “I see a lot of things as half empty and I’m a glass half full guy. We have a very strong foundation at RFK and right now. I’m a racer; it’s taken me too long to win races and I feel like we want to continue that.”
Bowers, who runs a company of about 200 employees, said he isn’t worried the change will break relationships within the organization. While crediting Keselowski for helping establish RFK’s new culture, he emphasizes that changing the trajectory of the organization has been a collective effort.
“Culture is not run by one person; it’s led by many, and a lot of that credit goes to all the people in our organization who see the vision of what we’re trying to accomplish,” Bowers said. “It starts at the top. I have a mentor in our company who always says the best recipe for success in professional sports is three ingredients: ownership, ownership and ownership. And so when you have great ownership at the top, we send the communication that we want to be great, and this is what greatness looks like to us, and we want you to be a part of it.”
Keselowski says he has received several phone calls from various members of the industry and has been pleasantly surprised by the comments he has received on social media since Tuesday’s announcement. He has not yet signed anything for the 2027 season, believing that several options will be on the table.
“I’m open to anything,” Keselowski explained, admitting that running a full-time season in the Craftsman Truck Series would pique his interest, potentially becoming the first driver to win championships in all three national touring series. “I’m going to look at the best opportunity in front of me and then make a decision.”
The 36-time Cup winner will be hoping his immediate future is secured over the next couple of months. He isn’t sweating his racing career, believing there is enough interest in the sport to find a new home.
As for Keselowski’s legacy at RFK, he is proud to have helped transform the organization from a “tier three team” to one on the verge of becoming a “tier one” operation within the Ford camp.
“I’m really proud of the things we’ve done and the people we’ve been able to work with and watch grow and develop and turn around the company and the team. It’s been the pleasure of a lifetime to be a part of it,” Keselowski said. “You always hate to leave that, to lose that, whatever it may be. It’s part of life. It’s kind of like leaving high school, but that’s where we are.”
Keselowski will start 16th in Sunday’s South Point 400 (5:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
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