Richard Childress Racing names Busch's new crew chief for 2026

NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch. Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Richard Childress Racing names Kyle Busch's new crew chief for 2026

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Oct 16, 2025 11:50 AM ET

Richard Childress Racing has found Kyle Busch a new crew chief for the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Randall Burnett, who had been Busch's crew chief since his stint with RCR began in 2023, will be the crew chief for Trackhouse Racing rookie Connor Zilisch in 2026. Burnett has not been on Busch's pit box since the Sept. 28 race at Kansas Speedway, with Andy Street calling the shots for the last two races.

In 2026, Jim Pohlman, who has served as Justin Allgaier's crew chief in the NASCAR Xfinity Series since 2023, will be Busch's crew chief. Pohlman has called 20 Cup Series races as a crew chief.

NEWS: Richard Childress Racing appoints Jim Pohlman Crew Chief of the No. 8 Chevrolet and driver Kyle Busch in the NASCAR Cup Series beginning in 2026.

Read more: https://t.co/zk2eh42aVR pic.twitter.com/8E9osyw7ZX
— RCR (@RCRracing) October 16, 2025

Pohlman has won nine Xfinity Series races with Allgaier and the 2024 Xfinity Series title. Allgaier and Pohlman are once again in contention for the Xfinity Series championship this season.

Could new crew chief turn Kyle Busch's RCR tenure around?

In contrast to Pohlman's success, Busch is in the midst of the worst two-year slump of his Cup Series career. He hasn't made the playoffs since 2023 and hasn't won a race in over two years — easily the longest drought of his career.

No matter how Busch performs over the last three races of 2025, he will set a new career low in top-10 finishes. He's also on pace for the worst points finish of his career. If anyone needed a crew chief shake-up going into 2026, it was Busch. Pohlman could be the catalyst for the future Hall of Famer to get back to his winning ways.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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