Richard Childress Racing announced a new rebrand of the No. 8 car as Kyle Busch is now a member of the organization after a lengthy tenure with Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 18 car, which is now the No. 54 car.
Busch replaced Tyler Reddick who coincidentally replaced his brother, Kurt Busch, in the No. 45 car for 23XI Racing after he announced his intentions to step away from full-time racing stemming from a concussion suffered at Pocono Raceway this year.
The new No. 8 car features a different number font and paint schemes compared to Reddick’s three-year tenure in the car. The President of Richard Childress Racing talked about this rebrand on Thursday.
Related: Kyle Busch’s future in NASCAR has huge unanswered questions
Richard Childress Racing discusses the newly branded No. 8 car for Kyle Busch
Richard Childress Racing will see Busch in the No. 8 car and Austin Dillon in the No. 3 car next season. While Dillon’s No. 3 machine will likely remain the same, there have been changes to Busch’s car, as mentioned above.
Torrey Galida, President of Richard Childress Racing, went on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio to discuss the changes made to the No. 8 car for the 2023 season and beyond.
“It was actually (Kyle Busch)’s idea…Kyle is a very hands-on guy and very detail-oriented and I think that part of his personality is a part of the key to the immense success that he’s had in NASCAR. He pays attention to the details so he asked (Richard Childress Racing) if he could take a crack at redesigning the (No. 8 car). He wanted to make it more contemporary and he wanted to put his own stamp on it…so him with a little help from (Richard Childress) came up with a new number that we all really like.”
Torrey Galida on Kyle Busch’s rebranded No. 8 car
It is not surprising to hear that Busch was behind the idea to rebrand the vehicle. After spending 15 years at Joe Gibbs Racing, the idea of creating your own brand and having a new look is important.
This is similar to Ty Gibbs as he enters the NASCAR Cup Series with Joe Gibbs Racing next season. Gibbs will be replacing Busch but drive the No. 54 car which is the same as his NASCAR Xfinity Series number.
The 20-year-old needs to create his own brand and driving the No. 18 car would have made him Busch’s replacement. While that is the case, it allows him to put that narrative to the side more than before.
As for Busch, this represents a new chapter in a first-ballot Hall-of-Fame career. The story is not done but it is certainly going to be different to see Busch behind the wheel of Richard Childress Racing entry.