RFK Racing just got hit with a major bombshell after owner Brad Keselowski announced he will not be racing with the team after 2026. The unexpected news from the 2012 NASCAR champion changes the outlook for one of Ford’s most recognizable drivers and opens one of the biggest seats in the Cup Series garage heading into 2027. Keselowski joined RFK ahead of the 2022 season after spending the better part of his Cup career up until that point with Team Penske.
When he joined the team, he already had 34 Cup Series wins and a championship on his resume, but his role with RFK was different than most. Keselowski quickly became the team’s co-owner as he prepared to take the driver’s seat in the No. 6 Ford, giving him a pivotal role in the organization’s attempt to rebuild its competition program.
Fast forward five seasons later to today, and that chapter is now preparing to come to a close. Keselowski will finish out the 2026 season with RFK, but he will not be in the driver’s seat of the No. 6 in 2027. His next move has not yet been revealed, but Keselowski wants fans to know one thing: this is not the end of his driving career.
This leaves the No. 6 Ford as one of the most pressing questions of the offseason. RFK already has Ryan Preece set to return in 2027, while the organization continues to build around its existing program. Keselowski’s departure therefore creates more than an empty seat. It marks the end of a period in which the veteran driver played a role on both the competition and ownership sides of the organization. However, the timing comes after a difficult stretch for Keselowski on the track.
He has missed the NASCAR playoffs in each of the last two seasons and currently sits 18th in the 2026 Cup Series standings. RFK also recently made a crew chief change on the No. 6, with Jeremy Bullins leaving the organization and Mike Skarbowski taking over beginning at Kansas Speedway. Keselowski’s tenure at RFK has shown moments of progress, including putting Chris Buescher in Victory Lane in 2023 and the team’s regular-season finale victory with Ryan Preece in 2026.
Yet the No. 6 has struggled to match the consistency of the team’s strongest stretches, leaving Keselowski still searching for another breakthrough in what has become an increasingly important final season with RFK. Now, the focus shifts to what’s ahead. Keselowski remains a driver with a championship, 34 Cup victories, and more than 500 career starts, but the 2027 season will look different for the veteran.
His five-year run with RFK is nearing its conclusion, and the No. 6 Ford will soon belong to someone else. For RFK Racing, the task ahead will be to find the next driver for one of its most established entries. For Keselowski, the final races of 2026 now carry another layer of significance as he prepares to close one chapter while searching for the next place his NASCAR career will take him.
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