First chances are rare in racing, and second chances rarer still.
Ryan Preece has thrown the aforementioned proverb to the wayside.
On Tuesday, RFK Racing announced that Preece will be the pilot of the organization’s third NASCAR Cup Series entry in 2025, marking Preece’s third Cup Series team in five years.
It’s a welcome opportunity for the 34-year-old from Berlin, Conn., whose previous team in Stewart-Haas Racing shut down at the conclusion of the 2024 season.
Preece’s career has been marred by constant criticisms and the narrative that the short track ace doesn’t have what it takes to compete in the Cup Series. After making his Cup Series debut at his home track of New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2015, Preece waited until 2019 for his first full-time opportunity at NASCAR’s highest level.
Preece teamed up with JTG-Daugherty Racing and Kroger — who ironically, was announced as a new primary sponsor of RFK alongside Preece’s signing on Tuesday — and remained with the team through the end of 2021. In 2021, however, Preece’s No. 37 was an unchartered entry, quickly becoming a money pit for the organization.
Just like that, Preece was back to square one.
Soon, a hero emerged in the form of three-time Cup Series champion Tony Stewart, who chose Preece to drive the No. 41 at Stewart-Haas Racing in 2023. Preece remained with the team in 2024, but in May, it was announced that SHR would shut its doors after the season came to a close.
For the second time in three years, Preece was left looking for opportunities.
Just like his Stewart-Haas teammates, though, Preece’s talent was noticed. As Josh Berry, Noah Gragson and Chase Briscoe were signed to the Wood Brothers, Front Row Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing, respectively, talks were underway to bring back RFK Racing’s third Cup Series entry for 2025, with Preece behind the wheel.
Preece’s signing marks a fresh start for both driver and team, and puts a feather in the cap of co-owner Brad Keselowski. Preece marks the first full-time driver signing RFK has made since Keselowski became a co-owner of RFK in 2022.
Preece’s results in the Cup Series so far can’t be sugar coated. During his tenure with both JTG-Daugherty and Stewart-Haas, he failed to win or make the playoffs. In five full-time seasons, he only has 14 top-10 finishes.
In his defense, however, JTG-Daugherty was still an organization trying to find stability after the departure of AJ Allmendinger. By the time 2023 rolled around, Stewart-Haas was long removed from their success in 2020, and in 2024 the team’s employees were focused on finding work for the future.
RFK Racing will be the most stable situation Preece has walked into during his Cup Series career. It’s an organization on the rise, and a team coming off of five wins and four playoff appearances between its two cars over the last two seasons.
Preece doesn’t have any excuses to put forth mediocre results at RFK, but if he performs to his potential, that won’t be a problem.
–Samuel Stubbs, Field Level Media
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