Ricky Stenhouse Jr. lapped Tennessean sports writer in go-kart race
NASCAR Cup driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. lapped Tennessean sports writer Mike Organ twice in a 12-lap race at K1 Speed in Nashville.
- Kyle Busch and Richard Childress confirm a contract extension through the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.
- Busch aims for improved performance in the No. 8 Chevrolet, focusing on consistent speed throughout races.
- Childress emphasizes RCR’s commitment to providing Busch with the resources needed to succeed, highlighting engineering advancements.
Two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch sat behind microphones in the media center at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 25, with a smile and a determined look on his face. With NASCAR Cup Series team owner Richard Childress sitting to his right, the two confirmed another year together with RCR Enterprises with the addition of the 2026 season.
Busch, a native of Las Vegas, began driving the No. 8 Chevrolets in 2023 with a contract to drive through 2025 with an option year for 2026. His determination for a better season was easy to see in his eyes, as not to say 2025 has been bad with one top-five and four top-10s. Busch has 63 career Cup Series wins to his credit, three coming with team owner Richard Childress in 2023.
“I really want to give thanks to Richard and Judy (Childress) and everyone at RCR for another opportunity to be able to go back and drive the 8 car for next season,” Busch said. “…There’s a lot of things happening behind the scenes. It’s a great place to be, a great place to work, a great atmosphere, and a lot of grit and determination with a lot of people up there in Welcome, North Carolina.
“We have certainly had our battles. It’s been fun, but yet challenging. It definitely isn’t easy. This sport is very, very tough, very, very close and challenging. Being able to score those wins and compete for those each and every week … we know those areas in which we can improve both behind the wheel, on pit road, in engineering, all of the above. This is just the pinnacle of that, and I hope to continue to build on our successes that we’ve been working towards for the last two years.”
Busch is constantly working to get better, driving the race car, spending time in the General Motors simulator, as well as thinking of anything to find extra speed to get back in Victory Lane.
“I think the speed has been there,” Busch said. “More and more, we continue to work on that and get that closer to where it’s consistent speed. I feel like there’s times in the race where we do have top speed, but it’s not the whole race. So, we’ve got to work beginning to end and being able to put everything together. So that’s a big part of what you see. A lot of these guys that are winning right now … they’re just good from start to finish. So that’s a big piece of what we’re doing.”
Childress said the new mindset at RCR is to give his driver whatever he needs to get the job done. Those needs differ from driver to driver and are enhanced by Busch’s crew chief, Randall Burnett and the crew and engineers with him.
“This (Gen 7) car is a lot different (than past cars),” Childress said. “It’s so engineer-driven, so we’re stepping our engineering up more. I’m excited about the future and where we can go. Watching Kyle race and working with him, it’s been a great pleasure. You know, he’s a champion.
“It all boils down to the drivers having their own feel and we’re working hard to get that feel. The first year, we won three races right off the bat. We’ve changed a little in our engineering and I think that bit us just a little…we’ve got to get the car the feel that he wants. These cars are different. And once we get that feel he wants, it’s going to be Katie Bar the Door.”
The six-time Cup Series championship team owner was very successful with Dale Earnhardt for 10 races in 1981 and from 1984 through the season-opening Daytona 500 in 2001. They collected 67 of Earnhardt’s 76 career wins together and Childress knows great talent when he sees it.
“Kyle has been great to work with,” Childress said. “Everybody had questions going in. I love a driver that doesn’t like to lose. We’ve worked hard. We’ve got some exciting things coming up. He and I are both alike in one area — that we don’t like to lose. We want to win races. I still think Kyle will win a championship, and we’re going to have it at RCR. That’s our plan. Here’s the guy that’s won over 200 NASCAR (Cup, Xfinity and Craftsman Truck). His career is not even close to being over.”
Busch is quick to point out that changes being made are being put in place to get him closer to winning races consistently and to pave a path toward his third-career Cup Series title.
“I give a lot of credit to Richard for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to be able to come over here and have a chance to drive his car,” Busch said. “So, for me, rewarding him with that and having the success on the racetrack is paramount.
“When I first joined (RCR), I feel like there were some things that we were doing within the rules at that time that got us some extra speed, and then there was definitely some things that kind of came down that they didn’t like us doing, and so that’s sort of where we’ve lost a little bit, if people are wondering why have we not been able to win like we did in the first 16 races. It’s just a matter of being able to continue to work with the people that are there. It’s a great culture. I enjoy working there, I fit in well there, they enjoy having me there….”
Is there more pressure to win in order to keep Busch in Childress’ Chevrolets?
“I wouldn’t call it pressure, but I call it a drive to win,” Childress said. “I felt like we let (Kyle) down some last year by not winning a race. There’s things that we’ve changed a lot to try to win. We will win a race this year with him and hopefully (RCR teammate) Austin (Dillon) as well. We’re working really hard. Like he said, he hit the key point. You’ve got to work smarter, and that’s what we’re trying to do. I think we’ve got a lot of good things going.”
