RFK RACING
KANSAS SPEEDWAY – EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Date: April 19, 2026
Series: NASCAR Cup Series
Location: Kansas Speedway (1.5-mile oval) – Kansas City, KS
Format: 400 miles, broken into three stages (completed at lap 80 / lap 165 / lap 267)
***Note: A caution on the final lap of regulation forced the race into overtime, finishing on lap 274 of the scheduled 267 lap distance.
RFK RACING RACE SUMMARY: RFK Racing delivered a complete team performance Sunday at Kansas Speedway, placing all three entries inside the top 11. The race was run nearly caution free, placing an emphasis on long green flag runs and tire management, before ultimately being decided in an overtime finish. Brad Keselowski led the charge with an aggressive charge from 21st to sixth. Chris Buescher remained a consistent presence near the front, managing tire wear and fighting dirty air to secure a solid 10th-place result. Ryan Preece capped the effort with an inspiring final stage, surging forward in the final laps as his car came to life, ultimately finishing 11th.
DRIVER HIGHLIGHTS
Brad Keselowski – No. 6 Trimble Ford Mustang Dark Horse
· Finish: 6th
· Start: 21st
· Laps Led: 0
· Stage Results: S1 – 13th, S2 – 7th
· Headline takeaway: It was another resilient performance from Brad Keselowski and the 6-team. Keselowski charged to the front, nearly scoring a top-5 finish, after starting 21st.
· Keselowski Quote: “We had a lot of really good long run speed and took advantage of that throughout the race. I would have liked to have been a little bit better on the short run, but long run speed I felt like we were one of the top cars. We got those long runs and took advantage of it and then just tried to survive that restart.”
Chris Buescher – No. 17 Dillon’s / Gold Peak Ford Mustang Dark Horse
· Finish: 10th
· Start: 7th
· Laps Led: 0
· Stage Results: S1 – 12th, S2 – 9th
· Headline takeaway: Chris Buescher backed up a strong qualifying effort to score a top-10 finish. Throughout the day he was the model of consistency, maintaining a steady presence among the lead pack, all while expertly managing tire wear an overcoming other cars on pit road that at times proved to be obstacles.
· Buescher Quote: “Our car balanced out pretty well a lot of times during the race and was pretty quick. We just had a rough go on pit road just from others around us having bad days and that ended up affecting us quite a bit. We struggled for track position on that front and we had a little bit of tire wear late on runs, but ultimately it felt like we were always trying to play catch-up and was abusing pretty hard today.”
Ryan Preece – No. 60 Kickstand Cocktails Ford Mustang Dark Horse
· Finish: 11th
· Start: 12th
· Laps Led: 0
· Stage Results: S1 – 19th, S2 – 19th
· Headline takeaway: Talk about peaking when it counted the most, Preece and the 60-team found the sweet spot combination of balance and speed during the race’s final segment. After finishing stage two 19th, Preece rallied to nearly score a top-10 finish.
· Preece Quote: “Just need to be a little bit faster. Started strong, that early adjustment really put me in a tough spot, felt like we were working backwards for a little bit. Derrick made some strong calls and put me right back up there. Great stops all day from the crew. Not the worst but not our best. Feeling strong about Talladega though and think our 3 RFK Ford Mustangs are working well together.”
Point Standings:
Keselowski: 9th
Buescher: 11th
Preece: 13th
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is Sunday, April 26 at the Talladega Superspeedway (Talladega, AL). The race begins at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX Sports and the Motor Racing Network.
