Keith Kunz Motorsports to End Team Operations After 2026 USAC Season

Keith Kunz Motorsports plans to finish its 2026 USAC National Midget season and then close its team operation, ending a long-running presence in dirt-track racing. Kunz says he’ll remain around racing, but the weekly commitment and hands-on demands have become harder to sustain. The decision also means KKM’s cars and trailers won’t appear at the Chili Bowl this year.

The change affects a team known for developing drivers as well as competing for wins. Based in Columbus, Indiana, KKM fields full-time entries in the USAC National Midget Series and brings in additional drivers for selected events. Its shop is now listed for sale at $2.95 million, giving the team’s exit a physical marker as well as a racing one.

Finishing the USAC season, then stepping away

Kunz told DirtVision that he and the team had considered an exit for several years before deciding partway through 2026 to stop at the end of the season. He described the choice as “semi-retirement,” adding that he expects to remain involved on his own schedule.

“I just don’t want that commitment of having to go every week and be there,” Kunz said. At 63, he said the physical work of running the team has become more difficult, and he wants more time with his family. He mentioned spending time with his daughter and grandchildren, including taking part in rodeo activities.

His plan is to complete the USAC season, which is scheduled to conclude November 28 at Ventura Raceway, and then call it quits for the team. That timing gives KKM a defined finish to its current racing program. Kunz said, “It’s not the end of racing, it’s the end of KKM,” leaving open what his involvement might look like after the operation closes.

KKM’s current full-time USAC lineup includes Colton Robinson in the No. 67K, Brandon Carr in the No. 98W, Gavin Miller in the No. 97 and Jacob Denney in the No. 67. Robinson is running a full 2026 schedule and competing for USAC Rookie of the Year. Carr is set for a 29-race National Midget schedule, while Miller and Denney are core drivers in the team’s national program. Denney is the current series points leader.

The Chili Bowl marks a notable absence

After the USAC finale, KKM has traditionally turned its attention to the Chili Bowl Nationals, where the team has earned eight wins. Kunz said he has attended the event every year since its second edition, after missing the inaugural running. He credited a 1994 victory with Andy Hillenburg as a turning point that helped launch his full-time work on midgets.

Buddy Kofoid, Cannon McIntosh and Tanner Carrick are among the drivers who have regularly raced with KKM at the event. Their appearances show how the team has extended beyond its full-time roster, drawing established and emerging drivers for a high-profile indoor race. Kunz said the team’s cars and trailers won’t be at the Chili Bowl this year, making its departure visible to fans before the USAC season’s scheduled end.

KKM has also been closely connected to Toyota’s driver development efforts. Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson both came through the team before reaching NASCAR’s top series. Larson later left Toyota’s development program, a move Toyota has described as a missed opportunity. Kunz said he still had several years remaining on his Toyota contract, but that the company understood the team’s decision as he grew older and put more people in place to handle the work.

Toyota has discussed its presence in dirt racing and the missed opportunity with Kyle Larson.

Shop listing includes warehouse and RV storage

The property at 1610 W. 550 N. in Columbus is listed for $2,950,000. It covers 4.52 acres and includes a gated 15,500-square-foot industrial facility. The listing describes about 11,900 square feet as Class A warehouse space, suitable for manufacturing, distribution, storage or contractor operations.

Building features include 18-foot clear heights, six 14-foot overhead doors, two mezzanines and 10-inch epoxy-coated concrete floors. The property also includes an RV storage business that generates $6,000 per month, according to the listing. That income and the warehouse features give the site uses beyond its current role as a race shop, though the listing does not specify how a future owner might operate it.

For KKM, the property is part of a broader decision to end the demands of running a full-time racing program. For buyers and fans, the immediate markers are the scheduled November 28 USAC finale, the team’s absence from this year’s Chili Bowl, and a shop listing that puts the operation’s Indiana base on the market.

View the property listing.

Keith Kunz Motorsports | USAC | Chili Bowl | Toyota Racing | NASCAR