Ford Racing Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
South Point 400 Media Availability — Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Saturday, October 3, 2026
RFK Racing drivers Chris Buescher and Ryan Preece came into the Las Vegas Motor Speedway infield media center before today’s NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session to meet with reporters. Both discussed the recent news that Brad Keselowski will be leaving the organization as a driver at the end of this season.
CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Castrol Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “Brad has been a great mentor and has meant a ton to our resurgence and getting back to the point where we’re in the playoffs and in the hunt to win races and won a handful of races over the last several years. He will certainly be missed in a lot of ways, and I think that on the other side of it is we’re gonna have to compete against him now. We know what he’s capable of because we’ve been able to experience it week in and week out for a long time. It’s definitely an unfortunate part of how it’s rolling around, but I certainly wish him all the best going forward. Knowing Brad, he’s got a plan. I don’t know what that is, but he doesn’t do anything without a plan.”
IS THIS A BIG BLOW THAT WILL BE HARD TO FILL AT RFK? “Ultimately, no. Brad has been great and has been a huge part of that, but we’ve got a lot of really sharp people and really talented people. We have some roles to fill and we’ll work hard and try to make the best decisions there. If we can get that right, then we’ll be able to keep up and keep pushing forward. We’ve kind of established a great foundation and we owe so much of that to Brad and that will help set us going forward on a strong path.”
WHAT PART OF LOSING HIM IMPACTS THE ORGANIZATION THE MOST? “We’ve talked about it so much through the years. Brad has worn a lot of different hats in front of me, whether it’s the friend side of it, the owner’s side of it, the teammate’s side of it. You’d have a really hard time saying it’s just one thing. That being said, his knowledge and expertise through the years has been instrumental in helping me continue to improve. That’s been my case everywhere I’ve been and all the teammates I’ve had through the years that have been able to gather so much from them and Brad has been just on a step above that, just driving for him and with him over the past five years. We have a little more time under our belts together and it’s led to a lot of success for myself and I’m certainly not losing sight of any of that.”
DID YOU HAVE A HEADS-UP WHAT WAS HAPPENING? “I wasn’t completely in the dark, but it’s not like I knew something was coming down the line. We’ve had some conversations, not to the pinpoint knowledge part of it, but from both sides – from Brad and right before letting me know, and from Chip’s side as well.”
RYAN PREECE, No. 60 Smith’s/Tree Top Ford Mustang Dark Horse – FROM THE OUTSIDE THERE’S A FEELING THAT LOSING BRAD IS A BIG BLOW FOR THE ORGANIZATION AND ONE THAT WOULD BE HARD TO OVERCOME. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT? “For me, I think it’s an opportunity for Chris, myself. Chris has been there for a long time and I feel like we have a lot to say and hopefully it’s gonna help the direction, but Brad has been a great teammate, a great part of their ownership group in rebuilding, but the house needs to keep being built, so we’re gonna keep trying to do everything right and still have success.”
WHERE DOES LOSING HIM AFFECT THE ORGANIZATION THE MOST? “I want to think that most people that are coming to RFK want to work with Chris, myself, Brad and everybody. I think, for me, he was a good teammate. I’ve got nothing but great things to say about Brad, but I understand this sport. I’ve been on the side where things aren’t going your way, so as far as all the other things, that’s probably a question for Chip. For me, I have nothing but good things to say about Brad as a teammate and I’ve really enjoyed racing with him.”
IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU WILL BE IN A CHARTERED CAR NEXT YEAR WE WOULD ASSUME? DOES THAT HELP YOUR COMFORT LEVEL FOR MAKING RACES LIKE THE DAYTONA 500? “I assume. I’m comfortable with being uncomfortable, but it would probably be nice to go to Daytona knowing that we can lock ourselves in without even needing to qualify in the top two. I’ve been a part of that rodeo before. It’s nice to be on the side where you’re chartered.”
WHAT WAS THE IMMEDIATE EMOTION YOU HAD WHEN YOU HEARD? “I think there’s just a lot of questions that we’re working on answering. What I’ll say is this is an opportunity to keep building the house. It’s not gonna get torn down. I see a lot of glass half empty things and I’m a glass half full guy. I think we have a really strong foundation at RFK and right now I’m a racer and it’s taken me too damn long to win races, and I feel like we want to keep going that way.”
