RFK Racing facts for kids
 |
|
| Owner(s) | Jack Roush John W. Henry (Fenway Sports Group) Brad Keselowski |
|---|---|
| Base | Concord, North Carolina |
| Series | NASCAR Cup Series |
| Race drivers | Cup Series: 6. Brad Keselowski 17. Chris Buescher 60. Ryan Preece |
| Sponsors | Cup Series: 6. Castrol, King's Hawaiian, Solomon Plumbing, Consumer Cellular, BlueForge Alliance, Fastenal, Elk Grove Manufacturing & Technology Expo, Esperion Therapeutics, Kroger (Blue Buffalo, General Mills), (Tree Top), (Coca-Cola, Oscar Mayer, Lunchables) 17. Fastenal, BlueForge Alliance, Esperion Therapeutics, Fifth Third Bank, Castrol, TravelCenters of America, Kroger (Blue Buffalo, General Mills), (Tree Top), (Coca-Cola, Oscar Mayer, Lunchables) 60. Kroger (Blue Buffalo, General Mills), (Tree Top), (Coca-Cola, Oscar Mayer, Lunchables) |
| Manufacturer | Ford |
| Opened | 1988 |
| Career | |
| Debut | Cup Series: 1988 Daytona 500 (Daytona) Xfinity Series: 1992 Goody's 300 (Daytona) Camping World Truck Series: 1995 Heartland Tailgate 175 (Topeka) ARCA Re/Max Series: 2005 Advance Discount Auto Parts 200 (Daytona) |
| Latest race | Cup Series: 2020 FanShield 500 (Phoenix) Xfinity Series: 2018 Ford EcoBoost 300 (Homestead) Camping World Truck Series: 2009 Ford 200 (Homestead) ARCA Re/Max Series: 2008 Hantz Group 200 (Toledo) |
| Races competed | Total: 2,371 Cup Series: 1,262 Xfinity Series: 726 Camping World Truck Series: 353 ARCA Re/Max Series: 30 |
| Drivers' Championships | Total: 8 Cup Series: 2 2003, 2004 Xfinity Series: 5 2002, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2015 Camping World Truck Series: 1 2000 ARCA Re/Max Series: 0 |
| Race victories | Total: 334 Cup Series: 143 Xfinity Series: 137 Camping World Truck Series: 50 ARCA Re/Max Series: 4 |
| Pole positions | Total: 235 Cup Series: 91 Xfinity Series: 96 Camping World Truck Series: 45 ARCA Re/Max Series: 3 |
Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, also known as RFK Racing, is a professional stock car team in America. They currently compete in the NASCAR Cup Series. In the 2000s and early 2010s, Roush was one of NASCAR's biggest teams. They used to have teams in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, ARCA Menards Series, Trans-Am Series, and IMSA Camel GT.
Today, the team has three Ford Mustang Dark Horse cars in the Cup Series:
- The No. 6 car is driven by Brad Keselowski, who is also a co-owner.
- The No. 17 car is driven by Chris Buescher.
- The No. 60 car is driven by Ryan Preece.
The team started as Roush Racing. In 2007, it became Roush Fenway Racing when John W. Henry and his company, Fenway Sports Group, joined as co-owners. In 2022, Brad Keselowski became a co-owner, and the team changed its name to RFK Racing. Since it began, Roush has only used Ford cars. The team also runs Roush-Yates Engines, which builds engines for most Ford teams in NASCAR and ARCA.
Contents
History of RFK Racing
Roush Racing was started by Jack Roush. He used to work for the Ford Motor Company and also created Roush Performance. Before joining NASCAR, Roush had won many championships in other types of racing since the mid-1960s. These included drag racing and sports car racing events like the 24 Hours of Daytona.
The NASCAR part of the business began in 1988 in Concord, North Carolina. It quickly became the main focus of the company. The team won two championships in a row in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2003 and 2004. They also won many races and championships in the Nationwide/Xfinity Series and Craftsman Truck Series.
In 2007, John W. Henry, who owns the Boston Red Sox baseball team, bought half of the team. This led to the name change to Roush Fenway Racing. Jack Roush still manages the team's daily activities.
In 2021, Brad Keselowski, a champion driver, announced he would join Roush-Fenway. He left Team Penske to become a driver and co-owner of the team, taking over the No. 6 car.
NASCAR Cup Series Racing
The NASCAR Cup Series program started in 1988. It was built around having many cars and helping other Ford teams with engines and car parts. Having multiple teams allows them to share information and resources, which helps all the teams perform better. Since 2004, their engines have come from Roush-Yates Engines. This is a partnership between Roush Fenway Racing and another team, Yates Racing. Roush-Yates also provides engines and parts to other Cup teams like Wood Brothers Racing and Team Penske.
Between 1998 and 2009, Roush Racing often had five full-time Cup teams. This was more than any other team at the time. In 2005, all five of their teams made it into the championship playoffs, which was a NASCAR record. After 2009, NASCAR asked Roush Fenway to reduce their number of teams. They went down to four, then three, and then two teams. For 2025, RFK will expand back to a three-car team.
In 2023, it was announced that the No. 60 car would return for the 2024 Daytona 500 with David Ragan. This car will race part-time with different drivers. Starting in 2025, the No. 60 team will race full-time with Ryan Preece as the driver.
NASCAR Xfinity Series Racing
The Xfinity Series team started in 1992 with the No. 60 car, driven by Mark Martin. This team has been very successful, winning many races. They won three driver's championships with Greg Biffle (2002), Carl Edwards (2007), and Chris Buescher (2015). The No. 6 team also won two championships in a row in 2011 and 2012 with Ricky Stenhouse Jr.. After 2018, Roush stopped its Xfinity Series program.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Racing
From 1995 to 2009, Roush had teams in the NASCAR Truck Series. Many famous drivers raced for them, including Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, and Carl Edwards. Many of these drivers later moved up to race for Roush in the Cup Series. Roush's trucks won 50 races and the 2000 series championship with Greg Biffle.
Truck No. 09 and No. 33 History
The No. 33 truck was used in 2005 for testing new Ford parts. Later, the No. 09 truck raced in 2008 with Joey Clanton and Travis Kvapil. Roush closed the No. 09 team after the 2008 season.
Truck No. 6 History
In 2006, the truck became the No. 6. It was driven by veteran Mark Martin and rookie David Ragan. Mark Martin won five races that year. In 2007, Travis Kvapil took over and won four races. In 2008 and 2009, Colin Braun drove the No. 6 truck. He won Rookie of the Year in 2008 and a race at Michigan in 2009. Roush stopped its Truck Series program after the 2009 season.
Truck No. 50 History
This truck started as No. 61 in 1995 with Todd Bodine. It later became No. 80 and then No. 50. From 1998 to 2000, Greg Biffle drove the No. 50 truck. He won nine races in 1999 and the championship in 2000. After Biffle moved up, Jon Wood drove the truck from 2001 to 2004, winning two races. In 2005, Todd Kluever drove the truck and won Rookie of the Year. The No. 50 truck was also used by other drivers like Carl Edwards in 2006 and 2007.
Truck No. 99 History
The No. 99 truck first raced in 1996. Mark Martin won a race in it that year. In 2000, Kurt Busch drove the No. 99, winning four races and finishing second in the championship. He also won Rookie of the Year. His younger brother, Kyle Busch, also raced in the truck a few times.
The truck returned in 2003 with Carl Edwards as the driver. He won three races and the Rookie of the Year award. He won three more races in 2004. In 2005, Ricky Craven drove the No. 99 and won a race at Martinsville. From 2006 to 2008, Erik Darnell drove the truck, winning Rookie of the Year in 2006 and two races in 2007 and 2008. This team also closed after the 2008 season.
ARCA Re/Max Series Racing
Roush also had teams in the ARCA Re/Max Series. In 2007, Erik Darnell drove the No. 99 car in three races, winning two of them. Colin Braun also drove three races that year. In 2008, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. drove the No. 99 car. He won two races and finished fourth in the championship.
Team Partnerships
Roush-Yates Engines
One of Roush Racing's most important partnerships is with Yates Racing. In 2004, they combined their engine-building parts to create Roush-Yates Engines (RYE). This made their engines much more powerful. By 2006, most Ford teams in NASCAR were using Roush-Yates engines. Today, Roush-Yates provides engines to many top teams, including Team Penske and Stewart-Haas Racing.
Other Partnerships
Roush Fenway also works closely with Front Row Motorsports, giving them engines, car parts, and technical help. They used to have a partnership with Wood Brothers Racing, another long-time Ford team, which helped them develop young drivers.
In 2005, former NFL player Tim Brown announced he wanted to start his own NASCAR team with help from Roush Racing, but this plan did not go forward.
In 2006, the energy drink company SoBe No Fear started a new racing team and partnered with Roush Racing. This allowed Roush to sell cars and equipment to them and help with engineering. In return, their driver, Boris Said, helped teach Roush's younger drivers about road course racing.
In 2007, driver Robby Gordon started using Ford cars and leased engines from the Roush/Yates engine program.
Fenway Sports Group Joins
On February 14, 2007, the Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Boston Red Sox baseball team, bought half of Roush Racing. This created the new company, Roush Fenway Racing. This was a big deal because it was the first time owners of a major sports team also owned a NASCAR team.
Aerospace Industry Involvement
In the 2010s, Roush also started working in the aerospace industry. In 2015, a company called United Launch Alliance hired Roush Racing. They wanted Roush to build a special lightweight engine for a system that helps power rockets in space.
The Gong Show Program
For many years, Roush Racing found new young drivers through a special competition called The Gong Show. This program started in 1985. Roush would get applications from thousands of drivers. They would then test these drivers on their skills, personality, and how well they could talk to the public. The best drivers would get to race Roush vehicles, often in the Truck Series, to see how they performed in real races. The top drivers would then get a contract to race for Roush. Famous drivers like Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, and David Ragan were found through this program.
In 2005, the TV show Roush Racing: Driver X on the Discovery Channel showed how The Gong Show worked. The name "Gong Show" comes from a funny talent show from the 1970s.
Images for kids
-
Travis Kvapil in 2007
-
Colin Braun in 2008
-
The 50 truck in 2007 driven by Danny O’Quinn Jr.
-
Carl Edwards in 2004
-
Erik Darnell in 2008
See also
- Roush Performance
- Ford Racing
