Kyle Busch left Joe Gibbs Racing back in 2022. Four years later, his former teammate, Denny Hamlin, called him out for his struggle at Richard Childress Racing. But Busch did not sit quietly. Instead, he clapped back at Hamlin.

During his recent interview at the Kansas Speedway on April 18, Busch fired back at Hamlin.

"I don’t feel like Denny Hamlin even knows what the h*** he’s talking about. So he can b*** me all he wants — and I can certainly make his life h***.”

Busch's statement comes after the JGR star publicly dissected his failure to win races, as he failed to win a race in the last 100 attempts. According to the sources, Busch's last win came at Gateway on June 4, 2023, leading 121 of 243 laps.

Based on the drought, Hamlin chose to drop his comment.

"Kyle Busch, I can’t hold the guy’s helmet talent-wise," he said in the April 13th episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast. "But this is not new. He’s struggled for five years now. If you’re expecting Kyle Busch to go just back to victory lane on a regular basis, you’re going to be very disappointed."

Hamlin and Busch share a direct rivalry, given that they have been teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing for 15 years. It was the same time when Busch won Cup Series championships twice, in 2015 and 2019.

But Hamlin has yet to win a championship, even though he holds the record for the most wins in the NASCAR Cup Series. The 40-year-old Busch has compiled 63 victories, ranking ninth all-time in the Cup Series, only two ahead of Hamlin.

Meanwhile, Busch is having the roughest phase of his career, and the recently concluded race at Bristol added more trouble after the Riley Herbst incident.

Kyle Busch Slams Riley Herbst Over Bristol Incident

Busch did not appreciate Herbst's action in the Food City 500 at the Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend. Busch and Herbst were involved in two separate on-track incidents, where the latter spun the former on Lap 313, making him lose significant track position.

"Bonehead moves," Busch said after the race about Herbst's action. "You just keep getting run over, and, certainly, I’m not going to take it. That’s just part of it, I guess."

It was a rough outing for the eight-time winner at the 0.533-mile Tennessee oval. He ended 25th and two laps behind while also sparking the last of nine cautions on lap 498.

In that way, Busch’s Cup Series future beyond 2026 is still doubtful. The 63-time winner is currently in a contract year with RCR. He finds himself 24th in the standings with no top-10 finishes and five outings outside the top 20 this season.

What do you think of Kyle Busch's attempt to defend himself? Share your thoughts.

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Written by

Sabyasachi Biswas

Edited by

Soheli Tarafdar