Brad Keselowski hasn’t looked like the happiest man in the world over the past few months at RFK Racing. He has voiced concerns about the No. 6 team’s performance, Ford supposedly prioritizing its bigger customer teams, and has hinted that he could perform much better in a stronger car. So when RFK announced his exit, citing nothing more than a disagreement over the length of his driving contract, the explanation didn’t quite sit well with Denny Hamlin.

Hamlin has been paying close attention to this saga, and after reporter Kelly Crandall’s bombshell revelation that Keselowski’s contract duration was not a dealbreaker during negotiations, he suspects that there is more at play. That, and Keselowski’s own cryptic comments, which could very well have revealed his future plans.

“I’m saying there’s more layers to the onion than I think we know,” Hamlin said on his Actions Detrimental podcast. “Brad has been very pointed in saying that you’ll find out in a month or so. I would say there’s certainly more to it. I think he’s leaving enough Easter eggs that I have my own theory about where he’s going, but I think it would be inappropriate for me to say.”

The fact that Hamlin found it inappropriate did not really stop him from actually sharing his theory. He hinted at either Richard Childress Racing or Trackhouse Racing as Keselowski’s next destination, and to understand why Hamlin feels that way, let’s take a look at what Brad said in Charlotte this past weekend.

“When you’re not in the right opportunity, it doesn’t matter who you are as a driver. There’s a little Kevin Harvick saying you can’t make a slow race car go fast, and you can’t drive a slow race car fast. I don’t think our cars are awful, but clearly we’re not tier one.”

Those were the two golden words. Tier one. Hamlin quickly eliminated the teams that fall into that category, which he’s sure Keselowski won’t join — Penske, Hendrick Motorsports, or Joe Gibbs Racing. Those are teams that are running well and are unlikely to change anything heading into 2027.

“What does that leave? I believe there could be some cards shuffled, with people moving early to other places. There could be something available, and Brad ends up at a Tier 1 team,” Hamlin added.

For RCR or Trackhouse to make way for Keselowski to join their team, a lot of changes need to be made. At the former, both Austin Dillon and Austin Hill are contracted until 2027. Dillon is also owner Richard Childress’ grandson, although he’ll be 37 next year, and it’s common garage knowledge that he’s being groomed to take over the business side of things.

Meanwhile, Trackhouse has all three of its drivers, Ross Chastain, Shane van Gisbergen, and Connor Zilisch, locked in for 2027. It’s the 2028 situation that makes this Chevy team an interesting prospect. Zilisch has already announced his impending departure to HMS, whereas neither Chastain nor SVG have made their desires clear so far.

Keselowski has said several times, since his departure from RFK became public on September 29, that he will let the NASCAR community know what his plans are in due time. And he has maintained the stance, even providing a timeline of a “month or so”, which means that a decision isn’t too far away.

That said, there’s not a lot of chatter in the garage about where he may actually be heading. Hamlin, on his podcast, also made it clear that he doesn’t have insider information and was only sharing his thoughts based on what he had observed.

Hamlin also read journalist Kelly Crandall’s report on Keselowski’s take on what RFK President Chip Bowers had said about his future and suspected that there’s something the organization is trying to hide.

Bowers had said that Keselowski wanted to drive full-time in the Cup Series for five more years. The top brass, however, wanted him to lean more toward the owner side of things as co-owner of RFK Racing and drive for around three more years. According to Bowers, this disagreement contributed to the split.

“Is that mandatory to getting a deal done? Absolutely not. But it’s where my aspirations are, for sure. There are plenty of opportunities that don’t entail that which interest me,” Keselowski said to Crandall in Charlotte, clarifying that the five-year commitment was no dealbreaker.

Keselowski also realizes that open spots in the Cup Series garage are very scarce. But he reassured fans that there are more opportunities on his cards than most realize.

Keselowski joined RFK Racing in 2022 as an owner-driver, acting as the team’s Head of Competition, and took the team from irrelevancy to post-season contention again. He helped them break a five-year-long winless streak and also helped his No. 6 team win a race at Darlington for the first time in over a decade (2014).

In recent months, though, he grew more and more frustrated with the other owners. He felt his voice as a minority owner wasn’t loud enough and complained that Ford treated them like a second- or third-tier team. He was also the only RFK driver to not make the Chase this season, as both Ryan Preece and Chris Buescher finished in the Top 16.

The signs were there that he was close to deciding to leave for better opportunities, both as a driver and as an owner.

For RFK, replacing a former Cup Series champion like him will be difficult, but what may prove even more challenging is finding someone who can replace him as the brains behind the team’s overall resurgence.