Busch’s ‘Modern-Day’ Dale Earnhardt Style Has RCR Set For Future

Since the death of Dale Earnhardt Sr. 21 years ago, Richard Childress Racing has been searching for a spark. 

A spark only the Intimidator could bring to the table. 

Earnhardt won six of his seven NASCAR Cup Series titles for RCR, with his last one coming in 1994. 

Though the team has still found success in the coming years, no Cup Series championship trophies have entered the Welcome, N.C., shop in nearly 30 years.

On Tuesday, the RCR stable signaled a move to change that storyline, with the signing of two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch. 

Busch’s track record speaks for itself.

With 224 victories and three titles across NASCAR’s three national touring divisions, Busch is already a shoe-in for the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

During their introductory press conference, Team owner Richard Childress mentioned the passion that Busch has, and the similarities he sees between Busch and 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.”

While Childress made the comparison, a stoic Busch nodded at times, with a quiet confidence. However before responding, the 37-year-old let out a brief chuckle, almost in disbelief. 

“Certainly, it’s flattering. It’s happened a lot over the years, but to hear it from RC, obviously he was the closest to him,” Busch said. “And RC being a racer himself, and being in the driver’s seat, and putting on a helmet himself over the years, knows what it’s like to get behind the wheel and to be in the elements of what it is to have success.”

“It’s flattering, it’s a great honor. Dale Earnhardt, though, is Dale Earnhardt. There’s only one of those. There’s probably only one Kyle Busch, as it’s gonna be hard to figure out somebody else that’s as close to this one as I am.”

That “take-no-prisoners” style of racing Childress mentioned, brings an added boost to the resurgent team, whose three victories on the season is its most in nine years. 

Two of those victories came courtesy Tyler Reddick, who announced in July that he’d be leaving RCR to race for 23XI Racing at the end of 2023. 

Busch will replace Reddick in the No. 8 Chevrolet, however, Childress reiterated that the 26-year-old Reddick would still compete under the final year of his contract with the team next season.

“I met with him about an hour ago, and I explained to him that he wasn’t going to drive the 8 car next year,” Childress said on Tuesday morning. “We’ve got a contract for him to drive for RCR next year, and I wanted to talk to him before this official announcement.”

For RCR, the ramifications of adding a competitor of Busch’s caliber to their team, has already made major waves within the organization. 

“When all the rumors started, and you’d walk through the race shop, the excitement just in people’s voice when they would ask me, ‘Is Kyle Busch really coming here and driving?'” Childress said.

“For that group at RCR, I hope they’re up there watching this right now. I bet they are excited to know that you’re (acknowledging Busch) gonna be the driver of that 8 car.”

With Busch’s contract being a long-term deal to drive the No. 8 Chevrolet for RCR, Childress believes it helps stabilize the 8 team in-particular — and allows them to build on their recent success for many years. 

“The reason we’re going down this road we’re going, is I wanna build more and more with that 8 team, and I don’t wanna do it in a one-year deal,” Childress said. 

“It’s a long-term deal, to go out and win races, and race for championships. That’s the reason when Kyle and I worked this out, it was time to put him in that car to help build the No. 8 team, and keep it going at the level it’s going for a longer term contract.”