2026 NASCAR rule change could majorly benefit Kyle Busch

If NASCAR victory lane were a well, Kyle Busch used to drink from it often. 

From his first Cup Series championship season in 2015 to 2023, Busch won a staggering 91 races across NASCAR's top-three series, along with another Cup Series title in 2019. 

But these days, the well has dried up. Busch enters the 2026 Cup Series season on a 93-race winless streak. He's only made five starts in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series since 2021 and is winless. 

But as the well has dried up, the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has become an oasis of sorts for Busch. Over the last two years, he's won three Truck Series events — not a huge amount, especially given the record-setting 67 he's won in the series in total — but three trips to victory lane are better than none. 

Truck Series schedule could benefit Kyle Busch

NASCAR made a rule change over the offseason, changing the limits as to how many O'Reilly Auto Parts Series and Craftsman Truck Series races drivers can run. Drivers such as Busch with three or more years of Cup Series experience can now compete in eight Truck Series events. 

Busch is taking full advantage of that rule change, as it was announced on Monday that he'll be running eight Truck Series races in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado. 

That schedule will commence at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Feb. 21 — where Busch picked up his lone Truck Series win in 2025 in a thrilling photo finish — and also includes races at Bristol, Texas, Dover, Charlotte, Nashville, North Wilkesboro and Richmond.