Kyle Busch overcame an early wall strike during Friday's Truck Series race in Texas. However, the collision unexpectedly sparked a remarkable comeback for the veteran driver.

Busch hit the wall on lap 13 and ended up a lap down after he pitted for repairs. The damage unexpectedly improved the truck's handling. Speaking to the press post-race, Busch credited the collision for shaking up the car’s balance in the best way. 

Busch said, “It helped. Yeah, hitting the wall early, it actually did help me. It tightened the truck up a little bit and flattened the right side out, where it took some shape out of the truck and gave me some side force so I can lean on it more. That was the confidence that I needed to be able to get that going forward again.”

Busch also said that while it helped, a problem was incoming. “You know when you do that, you’re flirting with disaster because it knocks the right front fender on the tire, so I was probably overconfident that it was gonna hold up and the tire wasn’t gonna go down.”

He said he should have known better, but when he felt the problem arise on the backstretch, he was able to get to the pits in time.

Busch entered the race in Texas as the firm favorite. Despite his Cup series form, Busch was coming off the back of a four back-to-back Truck series wins in Texas. Although it was his Spire teammate who ended up taking the win, Busch’s drive surprised many.

Kyle Busch Talks RCR Future Amidst Crew Chief Change

After a radio incident in Bristol, where Busch’s spotter and Crew Chief Jim Pohlman got into a heated exchange, RCR has announced that Pohlman was being relieved of his services. Andy Street is set to take up the Crew Chief responsibility on the #8 Chevrolet driven by Busch. 

“I thank Jim for his leadership and for him being there and being a part of our team and what he did for the time,” Busch said in a speech to the RCR team.

Meanwhile, with rumors that Busch's time with RCR is coming to an end, the driver confirmed he isn’t going anywhere. “I’m full in, I’m all committed. I’ve never probably worked as much in these four years as I did in 15 years at JGR,” he added.

Asked if the remainder of the season was a last gasp for him at RCR, Busch disagreed. He said that he has a good relationship with Richard Childress and thinks Austin Dillon is one of his better teammates.

Busch also explained that he has a good working relationship with Andy Street, and the team’s goals are aligned. He is fully committed to making leadership contributions to help RCR become competitive again.

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!

Written by

Debrup Chaudhuri

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi