Brad Keselowski moving to Roush Fenway Racing as driver and co-owner in 2022
By Bob Pockrass
FOX Sports NASCAR Writer
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Drivers typically have a simple request: fast cars to drive.
Brad Keselowski has had a bigger request the past few years: a say in how the race team makes fast cars.
He couldn’t get that at Team Penske, but he was given a seat at the table where competition decisions are ultimately made — and a likely seat at the head of the table whenever he retires as a driver — and a piece of ownership at his new home.
Jack Roush and the Fenway Sports Group announced Tuesday that Keselowski will have an ownership stake in Roush Fenway Racing and drive the team’s signature car, the No. 6, starting in 2022.
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"As a driver, I control certain parts on the performance of the car but not it all," said Keselowski, who has won 35 Cup races as well as the 2012 Cup title. "When you’re potentially contending for championships, you want to make sure that you have the maximum impact possible.
"It’s part of, to me, living up to the maximum potential that I have. I don’t feel like I’ve lived up to that. I feel like I have a lot more to offer than being just a race car driver. Short of having won championships in the last few years, I haven’t achieved that."
With the introduction of the new Next Gen car in the NASCAR Cup Series, Keselowski said this is an opportunity to expedite the process of improving Roush Fenway, which has not won a race since 2017. Currently, both of its drivers (Chris Buescher and Ryan Newman) are on the outside looking in when it comes to the provisional 16-driver playoff grid.
"The runway to increase the performance should be shorter," Keselowski said of the new Cup car. "The opportunity that the Fenway group and that Jack Roush presented was unique and strong enough that quite frankly, I couldn’t say no."
The opportunity meant that Keselowski declined offers to remain at Team Penske, his home since 2010. Penske did not give him the competition input he wanted, and Roger Penske said last week that the structure of Penske Corp. did not allow for any ownership stake for Keselowski.
Keselowski’s family has a long history of fielding their own race cars, and Keselowski owned a truck team from 2008 to 2017.
"I really enjoy the ideas of ownership and management and seeing people grow, being a part of success in a broader role," he said.
"Of course, sometimes it means being part of failure in a broader role as well, but the idea of building teams and seeing people grow and be successful together, I take a lot out of that."
Keselowski declined to say how much he was paying or the percentage of the minority stake that he bought. Roush Industries and Fenway Sports Group, formerly 50-50 partners, will own the same amount — obviously less than 50% each but more than Keselowski’s share.
The 37-year-old Keselowski has the opportunity to increase his ownership stake in the years to come. He said he plans to race for at least five more years, if not 10 to 15.
"We’ve made some wise investments, and I’m in a good position [financially]," said Keselowski, who shut down his truck team to start a high-tech 3D printing manufacturing firm that works on several space and defense projects.
"I’m in a good spot where I feel comfortable about the opportunity."
The 77-year-old Roush said he is not ready to retire but now has a succession plan in place for the organization to be his legacy.
"I am passing my baton to him – I am, but I still have one hand on the thing," Roush said. "I’m not going to give it up completely for a while. ... I intend to keep going to the race tracks as I have and be as much of a nuisance and a distraction as I’ve been to the drivers and crew chiefs in the past.
"Over a period of time, Brad will earn his independence and gain a significant position of ownership in the team."
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Some other elements of the deal:
— Buescher will remain at Roush Fenway as a teammate to Keselowski. Newman is a free agent, though he and the team have discussed him remaining in a part-time role.
— Keselowski wouldn’t rule out expansion into the Xfinity and/or the truck series, though he didn’t have a timetable for that.
— The organization did not announce sponsors or a new name for the team.
"There’s a whole host of things that we’re going to be changing: structure, partners and [more]," Roush Fenway Racing President Steve Newmark said.
"We’re going to get through this announcement since it’s been brewing for quite some time, and we’ll circle back ... on a lot of the details."
— Keselowski opted to drive the No. 6 instead of the No. 29, which has long been associated with his family.
"In the back of my mind, yes [I thought about the 29], but in order to live up to the legacy that Jack has set, the 6 number shows I am bought in to the company," he said.
"I don’t particularly want to force [that] as much as I want to be part of the team and show that I’m a team player and part of living up to Jack’s legacy and continuing it for years to come."
Bob Pockrass has spent decades covering motorsports, including the past 30 Daytona 500s. He joined FOX Sports in 2019 following stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @bobpockrass. Looking for more NASCAR content? Sign up for the FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass!
