HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — As was widely reported two weeks ago, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kyle Busch has re-signed with Joe Gibbs Racing.
The long-term deal announced Thursday at the JGR shop, the final stop on the Sprint Media Tour presented by Charlotte Motor Speedway, contains provisions that govern Busch’s participation in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and have positive implications for the driver’s own Kyle Busch Motorsports operation.
As the extension is structured, Busch will continue to drive the No. 18 JGR Toyota in the Cup Series under terms that were not disclosed. The No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry, which KBM fielded in the Nationwide Series last year, will become part of the Gibbs operation, with Busch as driver for approximately 25 races.
KBM will run the No. 77 Toyota for Parker Kligerman in the Nationwide Series, as well as a full-time NASCAR Camping World Truck entry for Joey Coulter. Busch will compete in approximately 10 races in the Truck Series in his No. 51 Toyota.
Busch will get engines from JGR for his Nationwide and Truck teams. That’s a change from Triad Racing Technologies, which supplied the KBM teams with engines last season.
Busch had looked at other options but decided to remain with JGR, despite narrowly missing the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in 2012.
“You look more towards the positive things, what these guys have been working on here and what Toyota’s been working on for us behind the scenes, and what we feel like we can do (going) forward to win races,” Busch said Thursday at the JGR shop.
“There was a time where it was very, very tough, where it became ‘D day,’ and you’ve got to make a decision. It was a very, very tough decision, and it was because you know that, if you venture off to do something different, then all the hurt and everything else is going to go on through that. That wasn’t the main reasoning of staying, but just the relationships I’ve had here over the time, it just made sense to keep going.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
- NASCAR to debut new short track package at Phoenix - February 28, 2023
- The Wrench Who Stole Racing - December 16, 2022
- Matt DiBenedetto’s excellent run comes to abrupt, violent end - February 17, 2019
