The stage was set for a massive wreck at Martinsville before a single engine even fired. Brad Keselowski’s bombshell September announcement that he would leave RFK Racing had already sent shockwaves through the garage, but the question that kept NASCAR enthusiasts intrigued was what was next for the former Cup Series champion. Desperate for answers, the garage held its breath when Keselowski called a sudden Saturday morning press conference. And the room was packed to the gills, with media members certain that he was walking in with a fully loaded gun.
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The interview caught the RFK Racing organization off guard, as Jeff Gluck recently revealed. He was there in the room ahead of the Xfinity 500, and the air was thick with tension. Keselowski’s soon-to-be former partners were chasing a deadline to strike a deal with him, one that would potentially save them from a public relations nightmare.
“It was scheduled days, if not a full week, before all this happened,” Gluck said on the Door Bumper Clear podcast. “And Brad scheduled it himself, not RFK. RFK clearly knew that, ‘Hey, if you don’t, there’s a deadline coming up, and I’m prepared to say a lot of things in a very interesting manner that’s going to get a lot of headlines.’”
Even until about an hour before he stepped up to the podium, things were not looking good. But then Gluck received the release. The fire was extinguished just in time, and without it, October 31 could have been a very “different day.”
“People thought he was going to burn down the house in the garage this morning. People are just like, ‘Oh, he’s going to burn it all down.’ And he comes in. Well, first of all, 30 minutes before he comes in, it’s like, ‘Oh, RFK has decided to grant him his release, and there’ll be mutual parting of ways, and he will be selling his stake.’”
Keselowski had decided not to fire any shots. The No. 6 driver told reporters that the two sides had found common ground, then showed Gluck and the other journalists his notes, with large X marks through sections he had apparently planned to use. Gluck later admitted on the podcast that he wished he had taken a picture.
RFK announced the agreement 30 minutes before the press conference. Keselowski said the release came about an hour before he spoke and acknowledged that, without it, things could have gone in a different direction.
Before the agreement, Keselowski was contractually barred from continuing his career elsewhere, even as he was being forced out of his own team. RFK granted him unrestricted free agency, allowing him to pursue other rides without worrying about legal repercussions. In return, the 42-year-old agreed to step down immediately from all governance, board, and competition oversight roles and become a “passive investor.” The agreement also established a framework for buying out or selling his 20% equity stake.
This last-minute agreement successfully averted the exact scenario RFK leadership dreaded. A former Cup champion going rogue on the microphone just hours before a huge Cup Series playoff race would have been a catastrophic look for the team’s corporate sponsors. Keselowski held knowledge of the toxic internal feud that had been brewing for months. The cracks were already becoming visible to the racing community, fueled by Keselowski’s growing frustration that his voice was being sidelined and his belief that Ford was prioritizing its other tier-one teams, like Penske.
He had joined the former Roush Fenway operation as co-owner in 2021 after parting ways with Penske and began driving the next year while also becoming their head of competition. At Martinsville, weeks after he revealed he would be leaving, he confirmed that he made a serious offer to buy Jack Roush and John Henry Fenway’s shares and take complete control of the team. They both rejected it.
Now, Keselowski will actively look to sell them before he formally exits the organization in the coming months.
“He got what he wanted. RFK, they all seem to agree because, think about this, right? So, he had 5% of the company,” Gluck continued in the podcast. “He had the option to get up to 20% of the company. That 20% is worth a lot more now than when he bought in. Especially how much charter values have gone up. Let’s say they’re worth $100 million each-$125 million each, whatever they are. And there’s two of those, and he owns 20% of the company just on charters alone. That’s a lot of money.”
Gluck’s reading was that Keselowski wanted the freedom to drive and potentially own a team elsewhere, while RFK had a financial interest in the terms of his exit. Keselowski acknowledged that there were differences and hurdles, but said the two sides reached an agreement.
That freedom puts the Dodge-Kaulig connection back in the conversation, though no deal is confirmed. Dodge announced Monday that it will return to the Cup Series in 2027 with Kaulig Racing, fielding two Dodge Chargers. It will be the manufacturer’s first Cup entry since 2012, when Keselowski won the championship in a Dodge for Team Penske.
Kaulig already had a relationship with Stellantis through Ram’s 2026 Truck Series return. When speculation about Keselowski joining Kaulig surfaced, CEO Chris Rice said the team had not discussed a Dodge ride with him and that the idea had not crossed his or Matt Kaulig’s mind. Later, as reports of Dodge’s Cup return gained traction, Rice acknowledged that Kaulig was working to bring a manufacturer program together, though hurdles remained.
Keselowski said at Martinsville that he had not had a meaningful discussion with Dodge or Ram, but that every manufacturer remained an option, including Ford, Chevrolet, and Toyota. Kaulig will announce its 2027 lineup during championship weekend at Homestead. Until then, Keselowski is a name to watch, not a confirmed signing.
The RFK standoff ended with a negotiated release, not the confrontation Gluck believed was looming. Whether Keselowski’s next move leads back to Dodge remains unanswered.