“When you put yourself in a position like that, you win races,” said Brad Keselowski. The Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s year began with a run of finishes that left fans and commentators bewildered. Having shown promise in previous years, the team appeared to lose its energy. In the shadows, though, #6 driver-owner was planning an enormous shakeup. He did not simply massage the lineup—he dismantled it and rebuilt it from scratch. Yet Keselowski stood firm, defending his bold moves and rallying his team to fight through the chaos. It’s a story of heart, hustle, and a refusal to back down, but the road ahead is anything but smooth.
The drama didn’t stop there. In a gut-punch to the team, NASCAR slapped RFK with a major penalty when a crew member was suspended for violating the substance abuse policy. The news hit hard, casting a shadow over the team’s morale and reputation. Then came reports of sponsorship trouble, with whispers that Kroger, a key sponsor, might be scaling back or pulling out entirely. This could “haunt” RFK’s season, threatening the financial stability needed to compete at the highest level. For a team already struggling to find its footing, these blows felt like a one-two punch.
Brad Keselowski shows fans a different vision from ‘future’
Keselowski, though, is no stranger to adversity. Two years ago, he made a pivotal decision that led to hiring a former Tony Stewart Racing driver, Ryan Preece, a move giving RFK “newfound life.” Meanwhile, Justin Finley was named crew chief for Ryan Preece’s No. 17 car in January, a move reported as part of RFK’s push to strengthen its lineup. These changes, the RFK owner believes, are the foundation for a turnaround, but not everyone’s convinced. But still, the racer-driver is not letting anything shake his team’s belief.
No.6 driver himself, laid it all out to Frontstretch: “It’s little bit everywhere. I mean, the engineering group is a complete overhaul, and you know these cars are very heavily engineering-based. We don’t really tell the story the way we’d like to as a sport, but getting all those pieces right is important. We had some changes to the road crew with car chief, mechanics, changes to the pit crew. Pretty much all changes behind the scenes were significant changes to us.” He knows NASCAR’s a game of precision, where every bolt, every hire, every pit stop can make or break a race. He’s not just defending his decisions—he’s doubling down, betting everything on his vision for RFK.
There have been glimmers of hope. At Bristol in April, RFK was “moving in the right direction,” with the RFK driver and Preece both showing flashes of speed. The Kansas race was another bright spot, where Keselowski’s No. 6 car ran strong, proving the team still has fight. #6 driver’s bold prediction that these changes would pay off, and some insiders are starting to buy in. One analyst suggested Spire Motorsports ousted crew chief Rodney Childers’ steady hand could guide RFK back to victory lane, while Finley’s fresh perspective might unlock Preece’s potential. But the skeptics remain loud.
For Brad Keselowski, this isn’t just about points or podiums—it’s personal. He’s poured his heart into RFK, both as a driver and co-owner, and he’s not about to let the doubters win. He’s been rallying his team, urging them to block out the noise and focus on the grind. “The most important thing to me, outside of being talented to doing it, was having a set of values and behaviors that drove me to do it at the highest level possible,” he passionately said. He’s owning it, standing by every choice—from the engineering overhaul to the pit crew shake-up to the driver hire that’s raised so many eyebrows. He’s daring the world to watch RFK rise. This was his dream team, and he has managed to have it! How do we know? Well, refer to the Homestead-Miami’s 2026 Cup finals hosting!
In the Back to the Future parody starring Bad Brad and Rowdy Busch from 2019, Busch returned as a Richard Childress Racing driver from the future in the NASCAR DeLorean crafted by Keselowski. He brought two things with him, rather than the obvious firesuit of his current team: the newspaper article of the 2026 Championship race at Homestead-Miami, and Brad’s cap, flaunting the ‘buildsubmarines.com’ on top of it! Looks like the driver-owner is quite positive about his team.
As the 2025 season charges forward, he is under a microscope. Can Bad Brad steer RFK through the chaos and back to glory? The critics are encircling, the challenges are mounting, but his fire’s burning brighter than ever. With the revamped team behind him, Keselowski is betting it all on a comeback. Win or lose, one thing’s clear: this former champ’s fighting with everything he’s got, and he’s not going down quietly.
Keselowski’s pole victory at North Wilkesboro was a bright spot
At the breaking of dawn for the team this season, Brad Keselowski powered his No. 6 Ford to the pole for the NASCAR All-Star Race. Keselowski’s two-lap average of 14.697 seconds (105.632 mph) was just enough to nudge out Joey Logano’s 14.772 seconds by a razor-thin 0.075 seconds. “This event, this format pushes you to your limits, from a driver perspective, a team perspective, pit crew,” #6 driver said with pride. After a season of ups and downs, this pole felt like a turning point.
“It all came together for an excellent run. The pit crew, they didn’t try to be heroes. They just gave me a really solid stop. (Crew chief) Jeremy Bullins and the team gave me a car that was pretty fast. They just gave me the ball and said, ‘Go play,’ and that’s what we did,” he said, his eyes with hope for Sunday’s $1 million, 200-lap showdown. The track’s 0.625-mile oval, steeped in NASCAR history, demanded precision, and Keselowski’s crew delivered. Their synergy was undeniable, a testament to the grit behind RFK’s resurgence.
Over in the All-Star Open, Shane Van Gisbergen brought his own fire. The Kiwi driver, still finding his footing in NASCAR, snagged the pole with a 14.942-second run in his No. 16 Chevrolet. The pit lane was just as intense. Michael McDowell’s No. 71 Front Row Motorsports team clinched the Pit Crew Challenge with a lightning-fast four-tire stop of 13.415 seconds. Kyle Busch’s No. 8 crew was hot on their heels, posting a 13.515-second stop, while Denny Hamlin’s team took third at 13.615 seconds. These unsung heroes proved that every second counts.
North Wilkesboro, with its weathered grandstands and fervent fans, felt like the beating heart of NASCAR. As the All-Star Race draws near, the stage is set for an evening of raw emotion, hard-won competition, and memories that’ll last an eternity.
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