Under the glare of the summer sun and high pressure, RFK Racing’s 2025 campaign has been a rollercoaster of grit, speed, and redemption. After 25 races, Chris Buescher sits precariously in 15th place overall in the Cup Series standings, while teammate Ryan Preece trails just behind in 17th. Both have been desperately clinging to life outside the playoff bubble. Buescher’s bold run at  Kansas was marred by a hefty 60-point penalty for an illegal front bumper, knocking him out of the top 10 and putting his postseason hopes in jeopardy. With rivals like Alex Bowman enjoying a 60-point cushion in 16th, both RFK drivers now find themselves in must-win scenarios. But beyond the stats, it is the unwavering faith in team spirit that is shaping their path forward.

The RFK Racing stars, despite their fierce individual desires to win, have never changed the internal narrative into one of selfish ambition. Preece himself pushes back hard against the misconception, asserting a 7-word warning that could change the course of the NASCAR playoffs. What RFL brings into the final races is not fractured ego, but consolidated firepower. In an era where teammate rivalry often veers into chaos, RFK’s approach: race hard, race respectfully, and race for the team, stands out. And that is exactly what Buescher and Preece have tried to emphasize recently.

RFK Racing balances brotherhood and battle

The RFK Racing stars, Chris Buescher and Ryan Preece, offered raw insight into what it means to be teammates amid a high-stakes playoff scramble, and how that mindset translates into performance and unity on the track. Talking about the last regular-season Cup Series race at Daytona, Buescher pulled no punches when he framed the internal RFK dynamic. “It’ll be a race and I think that the normal teammate, I wouldn’t even say agreement but just kind of mindset is you’re gonna race each other hard but be respectful about it,” he said. “And ultimately you hope that we have three of our Mustangs with the ability to have a shot to win the race at the end and we’ll just duke it out all the way to the line.”

RFK has indeed had all three cars stronger lately, especially with Preece capturing pole at Richmond’s Cook Out 400, and all three drivers will be capable of winning their way in via the final race. And that mindset of hard respect isn’t just Buescher’s philosophy; it is mutual, a synergy Preece himself highlights next. He returned the sentiment with equal candor. “Yeah, I mean to be honest with you, Chris has always been somebody I’ve found myself trying to work with, whether I was teammates with him or not, so that makes it that much easier,” he said. Historically, this trust is showing. RFK recently managed to get all three cars in the top-10 at Michigan, a rare three-car charge that reflected this instinct to collaborate. But with Brad Keselowski also in the mix, what does Preece say about the trio’s collective strategy?

“When you statistically look at these races even when he [Keselowski] gets wrecked or something happens he’s racing for the win,” Preece continued. “So, the way I look at this this race is our jobs are to get up in the first few rows and work with each other to get there. But if Brad and Chris are in the first two rows, it’s my job to find myself there to work with them and put RFK or one of us in position coming to the line winning.” Keselowski’s aggressive style has often put his Mustang near the front, even from challenging starts. Buescher has capitalized on that in Kansas and Michigan, and Preece backed them up with qualifying speed at Richmond to complement the dynamic. Still, the latter balances individual ambition with a bigger picture.

As he puts it, “So, whether that be Chris out front or Brad or myself, you want to be selfish as a driver, but understanding the main goal for the company and the employees and everybody there, it’s very important that one of these cars gets into the playoffs.” The RFK teammates recognize their ethos at superspeedway, yet in the final stretch, every driver is chasing victory. Their past experiences, notably Buescher‘s Daytona win in 2023, reinforce both mutual trust and fierce competitiveness. As the drama builds toward the final laps, how are individual drivers balancing ambition with team objectives?

Preece framed it succinctly, saying, “Our speed, we’ve shown it throughout this year. Chris, you’ve had multiple times where things didn’t come together, myself included, as well as Brad, so I think if one of our cars can get into the playoffs, it’s going to be a serious threat.” With Daytona just before the playoffs, their respectful rivalry is likely to play out across multiple battlefronts, culminating in a high-wire showdown at the World Center of Racing. The RFK drivers have their scripts already written: push hard, hold respect, and maybe, send one (or all three) Mustangs roaring into the playoffs.

RFK Veteran ready to shake things up at Daytona

As the NASCAR regular season barrels toward its climax at Daytona’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 on August 23, 2025, the playoff bubble has reached fever pitch. Tyler Reddick holds a slim 29-point cushion over Alex Bowman, but one surprise winner could flip the script entirely. Corey LaJoie captured the mood perfectly on Stacking Pennies: “If somebody outside the cut line wins, then there will be one car in on points, and right now, Tyler Reddick is 29 points above Bowman… And I would also say most likely somebody on the outside looking in will win. I’d love to see that. I’ve been hammering the six (Brad Keselowski) all week.”

Brad Keselowski, despite a season of struggles, zero wins, eight top-10s, and an average finish of 20.24, remains a superspeedway threat. His Daytona resume includes 19 career top-10s, a Bluegreen Vacations Duel win, and a back-to-back strong runs in the Coke Zero Suar 400. Ryan Flores summed up the risk and reward, saying, “I think the six is probably the most aggressive super speed racer. With that being said, a lot of the time it crashes, but he’s great there.” It’s this unpredictability that makes him the nightmare wildcard for Reddick and Bowman, who can’t afford chaos in the closing laps.

Away from the playoff tension, Keselowski also made headlines for his humor after Connor Zilisch’s Victory Lane fall at Watkins Glen. Once the rookie was cleared, Keselowski quipped on FOX: “Probably not. I think I’ll just grab my American flag and stand outside of it. But sure, scary man. I called Adam Alexander yesterday because now that we know Connor’s okay, it is one of the funniest damn videos I’ve ever seen in my life.” His blend of empathy and wit shows the dual reality of NASCAR, where one moment can bring fear, and the next, laughter.