Kyle Busch reminds NASCAR team owner Richard Childress of Dale Earnhardt
As expected, Kyle Busch is set to join RCR in 2023. He’ll drive the No. 8 car.
The move came from Austin Dillon, Childress’ grandson who suggested RCR make a move to grab the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion.
Tyler Reddick currently drives the No. 8 car. He’s set to join 23XI Racing in 2024. RCR has stated that Reddick will remain with the team in 2023.
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Kyle Busch comments
“I think it started earlier this year when we were racing at the (Los Angeles) Coliseum when the 8 car blew my doors off and was driving away,” Busch said during Tuesday morning’s announcement.
“I certainly knew right then and there at the beginning of the season that those guys definitely had some speed.”
“It just seemed that their overall culture—being around Richard, talking with Austin and having the chance to just look at the whole picture of what’s going on with RCR of late, and I felt like it was a no-brainer,” Busch added.
“When Richard and I sat down and we first had discussions of this opportunity, it was easy. It was a clear-cut choice that this was a place that you could go win races and win championships right out of the gate.”
“RCR has an impressive history in NASCAR and I’m honored that Richard is putting his trust in me to come in and continue to build on that legacy,” said Busch.
“Growing up in a family of passionate racers myself, I feel like the culture that the Childress family has built within their organization will be an ideal fit for me. As I begin the next chapter of my career, I’m looking forward to driving for RCR and working with everyone there to add more wins and championships to both of our resumes.”
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Richard Childress comments
“I met with him (Tyler Reddick) about an hour ago, and I explained to him that he wasn’t going to drive the 8 car next year,” Childress said. “We’ve got a contract for him to drive for RCR next year, and I wanted to talk to him before this official announcement.”
“The addition of Kyle Busch to the Richard Childress Racing lineup is significant, not only for our organization, but for the sport as a whole,” said Richard Childress, Chairman and CEO of Richard Childress Racing.
“Kyle is a proven contender at the highest levels of the sport, and I believe that his experience and dedication to motorsports will elevate our race program across the board. I’ve always admired Kyle’s driving style and his ability to win and race for championships ever since he entered the sport. Who wouldn’t want a proven NASCAR Cup Series Champion driving their car?”
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Kyle Busch reminds Childress of Dale Earnhardt
“When I was up there with Kyle and we first started talking,” Childress said, “and we talked about championships and we talked about winning races, I looked at him in his eye, and I had seen that look in Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s eye that he’s hungry—we’re going to win.”
“I’d seen that look before, and watching Kyle, I’ve watched his talent since he started in the Busch (now Xfinity) Series, and just how he handles the car, the car control, the way he drives the car and take-no-prisoners attitude, that’s the Dale Earnhardt style I was accustomed to racing with, and I think Kyle has that modern-day style of racing that Dale Earnhardt had in his time.”
Back in 2011, Kyle Busch tanged with RCR’s NASCAR Truck Series driver Joey Coulter. Childress took off his jewelry and punched Kyle Busch.
“We both have grown a lot over time,” Childress said. “We talked about it, and all that’s history.”
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Chevrolet and Kyle Busch Motorsports
“We’d like to welcome Kyle back to Team Chevy, where he started his NASCAR career,” said Jim Campbell, Chevrolet U.S. Vice President, Performance and Motorsports.
“As a 60 Cup race winner and two-time champion, he will be a valuable addition to Richard Childress Racing and the Chevrolet line-up. We look forward to working with Kyle starting in 2023.”
Kyle Busch Motorsports currently fields a fleet of Toyotas in the NASCAR Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series. Details regarding a shirt to Chevrolet is expected, according to Busch but that hasn’t yet been confirmed.
“Obviously, there was an announcement today with RCR and Kyle Busch and KBM has not been a part of that yet,” Busch said, “although we are still working on that sort of stuff with General Motors and Chevrolet.
“Kyle Busch Motorsports intends to compete in the Truck Series as a Chevrolet-branded team next year. Whether that’s two, three, four entries, we’re not quite certain on that yet, but we’re working through those details as we can right now, and hopefully, again, we can have an announcement on that here shortly.”
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Kyle Busch
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