Things are different this year for Kyle Busch. For one, he doesn’t have a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series organization anymore. Kyle Busch Motorsports was sold to Spire Motorsports last year. That included Rowdy Manufacturing and the entire building for KBM.
Busch is also not going to have Rowdy Energy around in 2024. The company has shut down for business amid some tough economic realities. For Rowdy himself, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Talking to Bob Pockrass of Fox Sports, Busch opened up about selling KBM and what that means for him heading into the new NASCAR season.
“I definitely miss the truck series team a little bit,” Busch said. “KBM still exists. We’re just racing at the grassroots level with me and Brex. But I’m obviously missing the people that were there and going into the shop and seeing them every single day or every week or whatever it might have been.
“That’s the part that I feel like I was going to miss from the start and kind of still do a little bit.”
Right now, Kyle Busch Motorsports is just for the Cup champion and his son Brexton. That means a lot less employees and, less stress.
“It’s also a little bit less stressful of just having two or three guys that I got to deal with now that I’m able to go into our [family] shop and just kind of work on cars myself and do some things,” Busch continued. “I’ve been the decal guy. I’ve been the fabricator. I’ve been the welder. I’ve been the engineer.
“We’re working on everything right now.”
So, with things a little more simplified in 2024, will we see an improved Kyle Busch?
Kyle Busch has a big sophomore year at RCR coming up
The second year of the Kyle Busch-RCR pairing could be a big season. Rowdy was able to win three races in 2023, more than most people thought. I think 2024 could be even better for the No. 8 team, if they can close out the season.
The big flaw in 2023 was just the lack of finishes in the second half of the season. Especially in the playoffs. Having three wins is great, but you would rather them happen in the fall than at the end of winter and the beginning of spring.
Busch is a two-time champion and he’s hoping to bring RCR their first championship in three decades. Then again, there is a ton of young talent in the Cup Series waiting to take the reins of NASCAR for themselves.
With new sponsors, a new season, and lessons learned from 2023, I think this could be a Championship 4 type season for Kyle Busch at RCR. Will he be able to keep pace for the entire season?