Former NASCAR Cup driver Kenny Wallace has expanded on Brad Keselowski’s criticism of Ford and Chevrolet. The RFK Racing co-owner said Toyota has a stronger system where they share information equally across their teams, and that advantage has helped the manufacturer dominate the 2026 Cup Series.
During a media session at Chicagoland Speedway, Keselowski commended Toyota for treating Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing as equal partners. He said both teams receive the best engineering support and information but Ford and Chevrolet have “favorite” teams that receive more attention than others. He argued that this gap has become one of the reasons for Toyota winning 11 of the first 18 Cup races this season.
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Wallace backed Keselowski’s comments and questioned Ford’s current commitment to NASCAR. He said:
” Chevrolet and Ford have their special special teams, their favorite teams, their babies. Here, you’re going to get more because we like you more. Maybe Rick Henrik got more because he’s got a lot of Chevrolet dealerships. I don’t know. Maybe Ford Penske more because Penske’s got a lot of Ford dealerships.” (9:45 onwards)
“I think they’re over in Europe. I mean, there’s not one Ford in the O’Reilly. And maybe if there is, I don’t know. They’re saying there’s no more Fords in the O’Reilly races. So maybe they are giving up a little bit. Hey, even if they’re doing good, the optics don’t look good.”
Ford has disappeared from the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series in recent years.
No Ford entries were on the starting grid at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this season after Hettinger Racing, the manufacturer’s last remaining O’Reilly team, did not enter the race. It was the first O’Reilly race without a single Ford in the field in the modern era
“We’re in a lull right now” – Brad Keselowski calls on Ford to improve collaboration
Brad Keselowski also said that Ford is in a “lull” and called on the manufacturer to improve collaboration between its top teams if it wants to close the gap.
Ford’s struggles have been clear throughout the season. The manufacturer has managed only one points win with Ryan Blaney at Phoenix in the first 18 NASCAR Cup races. RFK Racing, Team Penske, Front Row Motorsports and Wood Brothers Racing have struggled to match Toyota’s pace.
“We’re hopeful that we can continue to innovate with them to this next level. We’re in a lull right now that we don’t want to be in. Ford doesn’t want to be in the same lull. I feel pretty safe in saying that. The onus is on us to step it up and figure it out,” Brad Keselowski said (via NASCAR.com).
Keseloski also traced the problem back to the rule changes that followed Furniture Row Racing’s championship with Martin Truex Jr. in 2017. The 2012 Cup Series champion believes manufacturers slowly shifted toward supporting one leading one instead of building equal strength across multiple teams.
Edited by Palak Gupta