Richard Childress’ eye-opening comments to Kyle Busch following a disappointing outing from RCR at the NASCAR Cup Series’ Autotrader EchoPark 400, followed by a rousing speech at the team’s facilities, appear to have invigorated all involved.
After Busch finished 11th at the “Monster Mile” in the No. 8 Chevrolet, Childress got onto the two-time champion’s radio, saying, “Gotta get some race cars. We are in trouble. Period.”
This came amidst a tough season for RCR, in which Busch has yet to finish higher than fifth, while teammate Austin Dillon in the No. 3 has yet to make it into the top six. In fact, RCR hasn’t been to victory lane since Dillon won at Richmond in August 2024, while Busch’s last win came back in June 2023 at World Wide Technology Raceway.
Addressing Childress’ comments on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Dillon’s crew chief Richard Boswell revealed that on Monday, the 79-year-old vowed to do whatever he could to help the team get to the root of its issues.
“Richard Childress has obviously been a part of this sport for way longer than any of us, right?” Boswell said. “And to be perfectly honest with everyone, he pulled us into his office yesterday and said, ‘Hey, I said what I said, I meant it. I know you guys feel the same way, but I’m here to tell you that I’m not going to say those things and then not put my money where my mouth is. So what do we need?’
“So he just got straight to the point. I have absolutely nothing but respect for that. I want to win just as bad as anybody. And I dedicate my time away from my family to do that. And I can appreciate his honesty and I know exactly where he stands. And if anything, that just fuels me even more.”
Busch also recently gave his thoughts on Childress’ remarks during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show in Indianapolis, ahead of the Brickyard 400, telling the former NFL star their lack of pace “is not due to lack of effort, that’s for d— sure.”
“Everybody at RCR, back there at the race shop, they’re working as hard as they can; engineers are trying to figure it out and look at all the notes and figure out where the speeds at. Balance of the race cars has been pretty good this year, the driveability feels okay, it’s just the lack of speed.”
Busch and Dillon will soon take on the historic 2.5-mile oval in search of the team’s 118th Cup Series win, although with neither driver currently in the playoff picture, it seems unlikely that a sixth championship will be heading RCR’s way this season.
With just five races remaining until the playoffs begin, Busch is currently on the bubble, 39 points below the cutoff line with 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace currently occupying the 16th and final spot. As for Dillon, he is a distant 147 points below the line.
