RFK Racing aims higher with expansion to three cars

RFK Racing will take the next step in its evolution by expanding to three full-time NASCAR Cup Series entries in 2025. It will be a pivotal season. Brad Keselowski and Chris Buescher will be joined by Ryan Preece, and expectations are high for all …

RFK Racing will take the next step in its evolution by expanding to three full-time NASCAR Cup Series entries in 2025.

It will be a pivotal season. Brad Keselowski and Chris Buescher will be joined by Ryan Preece, and expectations are high for all three teams. Keselowski, also a co-owner of the organization, might be bullish about the future but also understands that going into its fourth season, another step forward needs to be taken.

“We want to win races. We want to win more races,” Keselowski said. “We’ve won six point-paying races over the last three seasons, and we want to be able to do that in one season. That would be a good mark for us.”

The current iteration of RFK Racing began when Keselowski joined forces with Jack Roush in 2022. Keselowski did not win a race in his first two seasons driving the No. 6 Ford.

However, Buescher went to victory lane at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2022 and then won three races in 2023 at Richmond Raceway, Michigan International Speedway and Daytona International Speedway. The roles reversed in 2024 as Keselowski finally broke through at Darlington Raceway (after the misfortune of Buescher having contact with Tyler Reddick inside the final laps) while Buescher went winless. A few opportunities slipped through the fingers of the No. 17 team.

Neither driver made the postseason in 2022. Both earned berths in 2023 and Keselowski represented the organization in the 2024 edition.

“We want to put all of our cars in the playoffs,” Keselowski emphasized.

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Preece joins the line-up from Stewart-Haas Racing. The 2025 season will be his sixth full season at the Cup Series level and Preece is still looking for his first career win — and subsequent playoff berth.

“There are some measurables,” Keselowski said of the year ahead. “But ultimately, we want to be in the conversation with one of our cars and hopefully more than one of our cars on any given race weekend to be able to win. We have shown a lot of progress there, and this is the next step to be more consistent.”

When Buescher won in 2022, it was the first win for a Roush car since 2017. The organization has eight points wins over the last 10 seasons.

Keselowski is the 2012 series champion. A Roush car has not won the Cup Series championship since 2004 with Kurt Busch. But the good news is that Keselowski believes that the success they are chasing feels closer than further away.

“There’s a lot of challenges, no doubt,” he said. “But we just continue to improve as an organization.”

Brad Keselowski’s new crew chief revealed for 2025 NASCAR Cup season

Brad Keselowski’s new crew chief at RFK Racing has been revealed for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. Find out who is joining RFK Racing!

[autotag]Brad Keselowski[/autotag] has reunited with a familiar face for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. On Thursday morning, RFK Racing announced that [autotag]Jeremy Bullins[/autotag] will rejoin Keselowski and become the crew chief of the No. 6 team in 2025. Bullins was recently with Harrison Burton and Wood Brothers Racing before leaving near the end of the 2024 season.

Keselowski was paired with Bullins in 2020 and 2021 at Team Penske and made the Championship 4 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the course of his career, Bullins has 10 Cup Series victories, including the 2020 Coca-Cola 600 with Keselowski and the 2022 Daytona 500 with Austin Cindric in the NextGen car’s debut.

Overall, this is brilliant move for RFK Racing, as Keselowski and Bullins have a history of success together. Matt McCall, the former crew chief of the No. 6 car, did a good job guiding Keselowski to his first Cup Series victory with RFK Racing, but the speed wasn’t present in the playoffs. Now, Keselowski hopes that Bullins can help him get back to the Championship 4.

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Bullins reunites with Keselowski for 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season

Veteran crew chief Jeremy Bullins has joined RFK Racing to reunite with driver/co-owner Brad Keselowski and lead the No. 6 Ford team. “I’m excited and grateful for the opportunity to work with BK again, this time in the iconic No. 6 car with RFK,” …

Veteran crew chief Jeremy Bullins has joined RFK Racing to reunite with driver/co-owner Brad Keselowski and lead the No. 6 Ford team.

“I’m excited and grateful for the opportunity to work with BK again, this time in the iconic No. 6 car with RFK,” said Bullins. “We were able to accomplish a lot as a team previously, but we had a couple of unfinished goals like a Daytona 500 win and a championship together, and I’m ecstatic we get the opportunity to compete together again. From the outside looking in it’s been obvious the trajectory RFK is on, and I look forward to being part of the growth and future success of the team.”

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Bullins, who has overseen 31 wins during his career, joins RFK after previous stops at Wood Brothers Racing, where he most recently led the No. 21 entry driven by Harrison Burton, and Team Penske, where he worked with Ryan Blaney, Austin Cindric and Keselowski.

He and Keselowski finished second in the 2020 standings, and won five races together across 2020 and 2021.

Keselowski enters his 16th full season in Cup in 2025, and fourth as co-owner/driver at RFK. He made the 10th playoffs appearance of his career in 2024, aided by a victory at Darlington, and heads into next year third among active drivers in total wins at 36.

Brad Keselowski’s ‘top candidate’ for RFK Racing crew chief in 2025 revealed

RFK Racing’s “top candidate” for Brad Keselowski’s crew chief on the No. 6 team in 2025 has been revealed. Who could join Keselowski?

[autotag]Brad Keselowski'[/autotag]s 2024 NASCAR season has come to a close, and while it didn’t result in a Cup Series championship, it should still be viewed as successful. Keselowski won his first race with RFK Racing at Darlington Raceway and made the playoffs. However, Matt McCall won’t return as the No. 6 crew chief in 2025, with a familiar face connected to the opening.

According to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass, former Wood Brothers Racing crew chief [autotag]Jeremy Bullins[/autotag] is the “top candidate” to become Keselowski’s new crew chief at RFK Racing in 2025. Bullins has been paired with Keselowski in the past, as he led the driver through his final two years at Team Penske. Together, Bullins and Keselowski won five races in two seasons and made the Championship 4 in 2020.

Bullins spent the 2024 NASCAR season with Harrison Burton but left after the Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway in October. This would be a great addition for Keselowski, who has previous championship-caliber success with Bullins. It remains to be seen if this comes to fruition, but it would be an excellent move for RFK Racing.

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Brad Keselowski calls for NASCAR to change the playoff format in 2024

Brad Keselowski calls for NASCAR to change the playoff format in 2024. Find out what Keselowski said about NASCAR’s playoff format in 2024!

The 2024 NASCAR season has ended, and three champions have been crowned. Ty Majeski and Justin Allgaier won the NASCAR Truck and Xfinity Series titles, respectively, while Joey Logano capped out the weekend with a NASCAR Cup Series championship. However, one Cup Series competitor doesn’t believe this format is “ideal” for crowing a champion.

On Sunday evening, RFK Racing driver [autotag]Brad Keselowski[/autotag] posted a thread on X sharing his thoughts while flying back from the last NASCAR race of 2024. There were several interesting comments; however, one stood out. Keselowski said, “Two things can be true at the same time- Joey Logano deserved to win the championship; This format doesn’t feel ideal for rewarding the NASCAR Cup championship.”

This isn’t the first time that Keselowski has suggested such about the NASCAR playoffs. After the controversy at Martinsville Speedway, Keselowski said, “This should be the last straw on the camel’s back for the playoffs.” It’s clear that Keselowski is ready for change in NASCAR, as he believes this playoff format isn’t ideal for crowing a Cup Series champion.

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Brad Keselowski to have new NASCAR crew chief at RFK Racing in 2025

Brad Keselowski will have a brand new crew chief on top of the No. 6 box at RFK Racing during the 2025 season as Matt McCall won’t return.

[autotag]Brad Keselowski[/autotag] will have a new NASCAR crew chief on top of the No. 6. box at [autotag]RFK Racing[/autotag] in 2025. On Thursday morning, RFK Racing announced that crew chief Matt McCall will not return to the No. 6 team in 2025. Over the last three years at RFK Racing, McCall has led Keselowski to one win, which came at Darlington Raceway in the spring.

It’s unclear who will replace McCall at RFK Racing; however, FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass said he “would not be surprised” if Jeremy Bullins reunited with Keselowski next year. Bullins previously served as Keselowski’s crew chief in his final two seasons with Team Penske, where he earned five wins and a second-place finish in the 2020 point standings.

Bullins will not return as crew chief of the No. 21 Cup car for Wood Brothers Racing in 2025, giving him the flexibility to join Keselowski if that is RFK Racing’s decision. Keselowski has shown speed in 2024, but the playoffs have not produced the expected results. It will be interesting to see who joins the No. 6 team in 2025.

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McCall to depart RFK Racing after Phoenix finale

Crew chief Matt McCall will call his final race for Brad Keselowski at RFK Racing this weekend at Phoenix Raceway. The team announced Thursday morning that McCall will not return to the organization next season, although no replacement was …

Crew chief Matt McCall will call his final race for Brad Keselowski at RFK Racing this weekend at Phoenix Raceway.

The team announced Thursday morning that McCall will not return to the organization next season, although no replacement was announced. McCall and Keselowski have worked together on the No. 6 Ford Mustang team since 2022.

A post by the team on social media read: “We want to thank Matt for his dedicated efforts over the last three seasons, his role in the success that we have had and we wish him well in future endeavors.”

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Keselowski won at Darlington Raceway in the spring, but that is his only win in three seasons with McCall going into Sunday’s season finale. The duo did not make the postseason in 2022, which was Keselowski’s first year as co-owner of RFK Racing.

Last year, Keselowski finished eighth in the championship standings, earning a postseason berth on points. He is currently 13th in the championship standings.

Brad Keselowski discusses 0.006-second defeat at Talladega in 2024

Brad Keselowski discusses his heartbreaking 0.006-second defeat at Talladega Superspeedway in 2024. Check out what Keselowski had to say!

[autotag]Brad Keselowski[/autotag] was so close to entering victory lane in the spring race at Talladega Superspeedway, but it wasn’t meant to be in April. Keselowski looked toward the second race in the Round of 8 for redemption; however, he came up short again. The RFK Racing driver led off Turn 4, but chose to stay on the bottom instead of blocking Ricky Stenhouse Jr. on the top.

It was a decision that ultimately cost Keselowski a chance at redemption from the spring. Following the event, the driver of the No. 6 car talked about what happened in the closing moments, as he lost by 0.006 seconds to Stenhouse.

“[Kyle Larson] gave me a good push down the front stretch, but [William Byron] was able to really stick with [Ricky Stenhouse Jr.] there and just needed a tiny bit,” Keselowski said. “It’s a good finish for us. We’ve been knocking on the door of these plate tracks. I hate that we didn’t bust through with a win, but I’m happy to be right there in contention.”

“I knew they were gonna have a really big run and that (Byron) was really tight to him, and I was just gonna get split, so I felt like I made the right move, but there’s only so much you can do when you’re outnumbered.”

As Keselowski said, he has been knocking on the door at plate tracks, and it seems like a win is right around the corner. It has been a tough 2024 playoffs for Keselowski after getting eliminated in the Round of 16, but there’s still more to fight for moving forward. The driver of the No. 6 car wants to enter victory lane one more time, and Talladega was a golden opportunity.

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‘I did what I felt like I needed to do’ Keselowski says about not blocking Stenhouse at Talladega

Brad Keselowski didn’t throw a block coming to the finish in Sunday’s Cup Series YellaWood 500 Talladega Superspeedway, and among those surprised was winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Keselowski chose to remain on the bottom and hoped his drafting help – …

Brad Keselowski didn’t throw a block coming to the finish in Sunday’s Cup Series YellaWood 500 Talladega Superspeedway, and among those surprised was winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Keselowski chose to remain on the bottom and hoped his drafting help – Kyle Larson – was enough to potentially drag race Stenhouse to the finish line. But Stenhouse had a better run on the outside lane, with help from William Byron, to make the pass and have enough to get to the finish line first.

The margin of victory was just 0.006s.

“They were going to split me, which is what I would do if I were them,” Keselowski said of his decision. “I didn’t feel like I had a shot to move up in front of the No. 47. We didn’t have enough smoke with the No. 24 pushing him; he would have just driven right around us and we’d have been swallowed.

“I did what I felt like I needed to do and got a good push from the No. 5, but it wasn’t enough.”

The field was largely in the same two-by-two formation coming to the finish as it was when the overtime attempt began. Keselowski chose the bottom while Stenhouse was on the outside. Larson lined up behind Keselowski while Byron was behind Stenhouse. Christopher Bell and Kyle Busch were in the third row, and Busch was shuffled out on the final lap when no one went with him to the third lane.

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Stenhouse led Keselowski, Byron, and Larson across the finish line. Erik Jones made it to fifth as Bell finished sixth.

“[I was] very surprised,” Stenhouse said. “I would say Kyle [Larson] and I are the best friends out there you could have, and Kyle wins a lot of races and I know that he’s probably going to help me out as much as he can, so I was really shocked. I was waiting for the block, and I was going to decide whether I was clear enough to get to his inside and get in front of the No. 5 or hang a right and take our momentum with the No. 24.

“Yeah, I was super shocked that he didn’t make that right-hand [move].”

Once again, it was another second-place finish for Keselowski at the Alabama superspeedway. In the spring race, he went for a final-lap move on leader Michael McDowell, but contact between the two allowed Tyler Reddick to drive by when a crash broke out.

“It’s a good finish for us,” Keselowski said. “We’ve been knocking on the door of these plate tracks. I hate that we didn’t bust through with a win, but I’m happy to be right there in contention.”

2024 Hollywood Casino 400 odds, picks and predictions

Looking at the odds for Sunday’s 2024 Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, with NASCAR expert picks and predictions.

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The NASCAR Cup Series is at Kansas Speedway Sunday for the 2024 Hollywood Casino 400. The green flag drops at 3 p.m. ET (USA Network) for the 1st race of the Round of 12 in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s NASCAR odds around the 2024 Hollywood Casino 400 odds, and make our expert NASCAR picks and predictions.

2024 Hollywood Casino 400: What you need to know

  • Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell is on the pole for Sunday’s race. Bell, currently 2nd in the playoff standings, has never won at Kansas in 9 Cup starts, but he has 6 top-10 finishes and a 14.1 Average-Finish Position (AFP)
  • JGR’s Denny Hamlin, who made the Round of 12 with a strong finish in the Bristol Night Race last weekend, has 4 career wins at Kansas to lead all active drivers. He enters with a 12.3 AFP, and he’ll go off 8th in Sunday’s grid
  • Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson, who tops the standings, has 2 career wins at Kansas in 19 Cup starts with a 12.3 AFP, 702 laps led and a 104.3 Average Rating
  • JGR’s Martin Truex Jr., who was eliminated from the playoffs last week, has 2 career wins with 11 top-5 finishes, 19 top-10 runs and 906 laps led in 32 career Cup starts at Kansas
  • Team Penske’s Joey Logano has 3 career wins at Kansas in 30 Cup starts, but he also has 4 DNFs and a dismal 16.9 AFP
  • Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe sits 12th in the playoff standings, and he’ll go off 9th Sunday. He has never finished better than 13th in 7 Cup starts at Kansas while posting a 21.1 AFP
  • Hendrick’s Chase Elliott leads all active drivers at Kansas with a 10.2 AFP in 17 career Cup starts. However, he goes off from the back of the field due to engine trouble in Saturday’s practice session

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2024 Hollywood Casino 400 – Expert pick

Odds provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list of NASCAR odds. Lines last updated at 12:09 a.m. ET.

CHRISTOPHER BELL (+700) is a much better value than playing Kyle Larson (+325), who is listed as the chalk. Backing the polesitter gives you a chance to multiply your initial wager by 7 times if he is able to steer his ride to checkers.

While Bell has never won a Cup race at Kansas, he did win once in the Xfinity Series at this track, and he has finished in the top 10 in 6 of his 9 career Cup starts so far, with just one DNF, and he has been as high as 3rd.

2024 Hollywood Casino 400 – Contender(s)

BRAD KESELOWSKI (+2200) is worth a roll of the dice. He is no longer in the playoffs after getting bumped out at Bristol last week, but he has a chance to make some noise on Sunday.

The RFK Racing driver has 2 wins with 7 top-5 finishes and 14 top-10 runs in 29 career Cup starts at Kansas Speedway, and he has led the pack for 351 laps. He is 2nd among all active drivers with an impressive 12.2 AFP, too.

If that’s a little too risky for you, ALEX BOWMAN (+1300) is a driver not a lot of people are talking about. He is 11th in the playoff standings, and he has been solid, yet unspectacular at Kansas in his career.

Bowman has a 15.2 AFP in his Cup career at Kansas, good for 8th among active full-time drivers. He has 9 top-10 finishes in his 17 Cup starts, with 183 laps led.

BOWMAN AND/OR KESELOWSKI TOP-10 FINISH isn’t a bad prop bet, either, when those become available.

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