It appears like NASCAR Silly Season is finally getting serious, and RFK Racing finds itself in the midst of it all. RFK only has two permanent charters going into the next season, despite operating three full-time cars in 2026, which raises serious questions about its long-term roster. What began as a charter issue may be developing into a full-fledged bidding war behind the scenes, as the garage is currently buzzing about competing manufacturers surreptitiously approaching one of NASCAR’s most underappreciated drivers from the RFK camp.

Chris Buescher – NASCAR Silly Season’s hottest hidden name

“He is definitely had a lot of interest from teams, and Chris, for a long time, is regarded as one of the more underrated drivers in the Cup Series garage where if you put him in a upper echelon organization, a Gibbs, a Hendrick, a Penske, he’s going to win races for you and contend for the championship. He’s that kind of elite talent. There are teams that are certainly interested in him. I know two organizations that have had their eye on him.”

That was Jordan Bianchi dropping a pretty massive NASCAR Silly Season nugget on the recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast while discussing the future of Chris Buescher. Then came an even more revealing follow-up from Freddie Kraft.

“One’s a Ford. If it’s not Roush, you probably figure out what the other one is. And then one’s a Toyota. It’s not my team. I don’t think so.”

What at first appeared to be normal contract uncertainty at RFK Racing is suddenly beginning to feel much more significant. Currently in a contract year, Buescher has quietly established himself as one of the garage’s most esteemed drivers. Crew chiefs, executives, and drivers routinely consider him to be one of the cleanest and most intelligent racers in the Cup Series, despite the fact that he rarely makes headlines.

His driving approach is based on efficiency, consistency, and patience. Buescher has a reputation for making the most of whatever speed his team offers him, seldom abuses equipment, and maintains his vehicles spotless. Put differently, he is the type of driver that consistently pushes a vehicle from 15th position (or way below) into the top 10. And the 2026 season supports that statistically.

With an average start and finish position of 12th, Buescher has already recorded two top-5 finishes and six top-10s so far this year. Despite the lingering uncertainty surrounding RFK Racing’s charter, he is now ranked fifth in the championship standings. But where Buescher has truly separated himself is on road courses.

He has subtly emerged as one of NASCAR’s most dangerous road racers over the past several seasons. Buescher has finished on the lead lap in 40 straight road-course races since Sonoma in 2017, which is the longest run in NASCAR history. He has been among the best in the series on challenging tracks in recent years, with an average road-course finish of only 10!

Buescher has already demonstrating his ability to surpass expectations long before RFK’s current resurgence. After winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2015, he worked with JTG Daugherty Racing for years to get success out of underfunded rides before settling at RFK.

Now, according to the garage chatter, some of NASCAR’s biggest organizations are paying close attention. Naturally, the reported Ford team leads to Team Penske, where Austin Cindric’s long-term future in the No. 2 car is still up for debate. Meanwhile, the Toyota side of the rumor mill has naturally led many toward Joe Gibbs Racing, if Denny Hamlin ultimately decides to retire at the end of the season.

Right now, it’s all still firmly in rumor territory. But in a NASCAR Silly Season already dominated by charter uncertainty and garage politics, Chris Buescher suddenly feels less like an underrated veteran and more like the one driver everyone secretly wants before somebody else gets him first.