Editor’s note: Today’s RFK Racing preview continues NASCAR.com’s countdown of team previews for the 2026 Cup Series season.
RFK RACING
Manufacturer: Ford
Engine: Roush Yates Engines
Driver-crew chief pairings: Brad Keselowski-Jeremy Bullins (No. 6); Chris Buescher-Scott Graves (No. 17); Ryan Preece-Derrick Finley (No. 60)
Team outlook: Not unexpectedly, the overall goal for 2026 is to return RFK Racing to Victory Lane — a place they have known well, but did not visit in 2025. Although none of the drivers advanced to the Cup Series Playoffs, the team showed consistent signs of promise, especially toward the end of the schedule, which bodes well for the 2026 season. Now both Keselowski’s crew chief, Jeremy Bullins, and Preece’s crew chief, Derrick Finley, have a year under their belt with RFK, which should provide the foundation to “raise the game.” Team co-owner-driver Keselowski came the closest to giving RFK a trophy to hoist, finishing runner-up three different times (at Atlanta and twice in the playoffs at Bristol and the Phoenix season finale). In fact, both Keselowski and Buescher (seventh) claimed top 10 finishes in Phoenix. And Buescher and Preece’s respective 17th and 18th-place showings in the final championship standings made them the highest-ranked drivers in the series not to qualify for the playoffs.
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 Ford
Experience: 16 full-time seasons in Cup Series; 593 starts
2025 stats: 20th in final Cup Series standings; 0 wins, six top fives, 13 top 10s, 0 poles, 222 laps led
Driver outlook: The 2012 Cup Series champion Keselowski is ready to return to Victory Lane for the first time since a win at Darlington in the spring of 2024, and certainly turned in the effort toward that last year with three runner-up showings, including one in the Phoenix season finale to close out 2026 on a high note. Keselowski may be challenged — at least early in the schedule — while healing from a broken leg he suffered during a ski trip over the offseason. But the 41-year old team leader remains as motivated as ever. Last year, the driver of the No. 6 Ford Mustang led the fewest laps (222) since 2010 and earned his lowest average race finish (20.9) since 2022, yet his output in top-five and top-10 finishes still remained on par with recent years. At season’s end, he was optimistic about his team’s progress in particular, but adamant that winning is a mandatory expectation. He is one of the sport’s very best on superspeedways, and a victory right out of the gate in the Daytona 500 would be huge for the entire organization.
RELATED: Brad Keselowski driver page
CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 FORD
Experience: 10 full-time seasons in Cup Series; 365 starts
2025 stats: 17th in final Cup Series standings; 0 wins, five top fives, 16 top 10s, 0 poles, 47 laps led
Driver outlook: The 2025 season marked the first time the talented Texan Buescher went without a victory since 2021 and the fewest laps (47) he’s led since 2020. That being said, Buescher was consistently competitive; his 16 top 10 finishes — including a season best of runner-up at Michigan — was most on the RFK team and absolutely in line with his output in previous seasons. And Buescher rallied to claim the highest points position (17th) among all drivers who didn’t qualify for the title competition. The only driver who returned his crew chief (Scott Graves) from a year before, the 2015 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Buescher certainly knows how to contend for titles and should be considered a perennial contender. The 33-year-old’s six-win Cup Series resume includes victories on a variety of track styles from the superspeedway (Daytona), short track (Bristol) and road course (Watkins Glen), proving he is a threat to win every week.
RELATED: Chris Buescher driver page
RYAN PREECE, No. 60 FORD
Experience: Six full-time seasons in Cup Series; 223 starts
2025 stats: 18th in final Cup Series standings; 0 wins, three top fives, 14 top 10s, 1 pole, 133 laps led
Driver outlook: The newest member of the RFK team, the 35-year old New Englander turned in the best work of his career – his three top fives and 14 top 10 finishes are both triple that of any of his previous six full-time seasons. His third-place effort at Las Vegas in the spring tied his best-ever finish (Talladega, 2019). The season proved to be a big positive for the new pairing with crew chief Derrick Finley and raised both the confidence level and expectations heading into 2026. Not only did Preece prove last year that he can lead laps; he did so at a wide variety of tracks (11 in all). Twice, he put together a string of at least three top 10 finishes, and closed out the season with top 10 showings in three of the final four races.
RELATED: Ryan Preece driver page