Brad Keselowski wants to keep racing, but he also wants a bigger say in NASCAR’s future. The 2012 Cup Series champion has now revealed that he tried to buy RFK Racing outright, only for the team’s other owners to reject his offer. The development comes weeks after Keselowski announced he would leave the organization he helped rebuild, raising fresh questions about his ambitions as a driver-owner and what went wrong between the two sides.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
Adam Stern broke the news Friday, October 23, for Sports Business Journal after speaking with Keselowski, who confirmed that his unsolicited offer had been rejected the previous week. The driver declined to disclose the proposed price or whether outside investors were involved, but he made clear that the bid was substantial.
“I would say yes, there is truth that I made an unsolicited bid to buy RFK Racing; that was denied in the last week,” Keselowski was quoted as saying by Stern for SBJ. “I think it was a pretty solid and significant offer.”
The timing gives the revelation added weight. On September 29, RFK announced that Keselowski would leave the No. 6 Ford after the 2026 season, despite holding an ownership stake and serving as the team’s head of competition. The split had already caught the garage off guard. Now, the failed buyout puts another important piece of the relationship under scrutiny.
The disagreement, however, has a specific starting point. RFK president Chip Bowers explained at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in early October that the team wanted Keselowski to shift his attention toward competition leadership over the next two to three years. Keselowski wanted to continue driving for longer. The two sides could not agree on that timeline, and their discussions eventually broke down.
For Keselowski, the conflict was not simply about his next contract. He joined Roush Fenway Racing as a minority co-owner in 2021 after leaving Team Penske, where he had won his Cup championship in 2012. The organization became RFK Racing ahead of the 2022 season, with Keselowski driving the No. 6 Ford and helping direct its competitive and technical development.
The arrangement allowed him to build a future beyond the cockpit without giving up the racing career he still wanted. His first win with RFK came at Darlington in May 2024, ending the No. 6 team’s winless run dating to 2011. The victory marked progress for an organization working to return to the front of the Cup field, though Keselowski’s ambitions for the team extended beyond individual race results.
His bid to acquire the entire operation suggests he was interested in a more substantial ownership role. But the rejection does not establish that the offer caused the split, nor has either side publicly identified the reasons the other owners declined it.
Jack Roush, through Roush Enterprises, and Fenway Sports Group hold the other ownership interests in RFK. Their precise percentages have not been disclosed, and neither has the value of Keselowski’s offer. The team has said it will work with him on the next steps regarding his existing stake, meaning his departure as a driver does not automatically settle his position as an owner. RFK declined to comment to SBJ on the rejected bid.
The wider business climate offers some context for Keselowski’s interest. NASCAR’s December 2025 antitrust settlement with 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports established a framework for permanent, or evergreen, charters, subject to mutual agreement. The change gave teams greater long-term certainty over a key business asset and drew renewed attention to the financial value of owning a Cup Series operation.
Keselowski believes that interest is growing well beyond the sport’s traditional investor base.
“As Madison Avenue has really taken a whole new notice of NASCAR and the team ownership model in particular after the settlement of the lawsuit,” Keselowski said. “I think there is increasing interest—rapidly increasing interest—in NASCAR team ownership. And it’s something that I desire to be a part of.”
RFK currently has two charters and intends to field three Cup cars in 2027 while pursuing a third charter. At the same time, it must prepare for life without Keselowski in the No. 6 and find a new head of competition. The organization has yet to announce the car’s next driver, while Keselowski has not disclosed where he intends to race or pursue ownership next.
His future therefore remains unsettled on two fronts. He has made clear that he is not ready to walk away from driving, and his attempt to buy RFK shows that team ownership remains part of his ambitions. Whether he can find a way to pursue both goals elsewhere is still unknown. With his existing stake unresolved and the reasons behind the rejected offer undisclosed, the business fallout from his departure could keep NASCAR talking well beyond the end of the 2026 season.