Kyle Busch Lets Slip of Toyota’s Superiority Over Chevy With Major Phoenix Revelation

Richard Childress Racing’s last win in the NASCAR Cup Series came at the hands of Kyle Busch. This victory was achieved at the World Wide Technology Raceway in June of last year. It marked KFB’s 63rd Cup Series victory, while RCR only managed to add three wins to Chevrolet’s tally of 18 atop the 2023 Manufacturers rankings.

All of those three victories for Richard Childress’ organization were brought home by Busch and the #8 Camaro Zl1 in his debut year at RCR. Now, as a resurgent Toyota Racing Development contingent stirs up the heat, heading out of Richmond and onto Martinsville, Rowdy made some interesting claims regarding Toyota’s superiority on short tracks, exposing a visible flaw in the 2024 RCR Chevrolets.

Top 10 Finish on a Short Track a Distant Dream for Kyle Busch in 2024

The best result in 2024 for the winningest active driver in the Cup Series so far, is a “viral” P3 finish at Atlanta behind Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney and race-winner Daniel Suarez of Trackhouse Racing. Ever since, Rowdy has only managed to finish in the top 10 one time, as he clawed his way to a P9 finish at COTA’s road race, the week before the Toyota Owners 400.

Evidently, the #8 Chevy has run out to be decent on superspeedways and road courses, but when it comes to the short tracks, KFB thinks it’s the Toyotas that are a “step ahead” this season. Busch discussed the matter with the cast of SpeedFreaks in a recent YouTube video. The first short track of the season emerged to be Phoenix Raceway, albeit an intermediate track at the length of approximately 1 mile.

Nevertheless, the much-discussed short track package was on display for the first time at the Shriners Children’s 400 and Busch finished outside the top 20 at P22. Ironically, Christopher Bell took JGR’s #20 Toyota Camry XSE to victory lane in this event. Crash Gladys brought this into context as she vented her “frustrations” over the interview while inquiring, “Can we talk about the short package with the cars that you guys have now? I was frustrated at Phoenix, it seemed like Toyota had an edge over what you guys have with Chevy. Is it a manufacturer thing?” 

This was when Rowdy made the all-important observation, pointing out,“I think it’s a little bit of both.I think the Toyota guys have definitely figured out something and they’re definitely a step ahead, whether it’s their body or whether it’s just their setup or whatnot. But you know, the information share that they have going on with 23Xi and JGR, obviously they’ve got some really good stuff.” 

KFB then compared the existing situation and the blatant Toyota dominance in the face of a Chevrolet fall-off. “The information sharing, whatnot, that we have with Hendrick and stuff, you know. We were definitely a step behind, all the Chevys (that) were at Phoenix. We saw last year, both races at Phoenix being won by a Chevy, and this year it’s like if you were upfront and you had track position, you could hold it. But it was never like the Chevys were ever going forward and taking the lead, you know? So definitely seeing a discrepancy or a disparity there at that speedway.”

Is it Chevrolet or RCR?

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Ryan Newman was the last RCR driver to give the team a win at Phoenix’s 1-mile dog-legged “short track” in 2017, the question arises: Is this a Chevrolet problem, or is RCR to blame for this recent slump? Newman committed this feat in the #31 Chevrolet, as Austin Dillon took the iconic #3 to a meager P18 spot.

Dillon’s first win would come that very year at the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The #3 driver won three more times after that, with his most recent win coming in 2022 at the final race of the regular season in Daytona. Although Dillon’s four Cup Series victories have all come in challenging races and legendary venues, the #3 car hasn’t seen victory lane confetti for almost two straight years.

In 2023, Kyle Busch ignited a spark of resurgence when he became the second champion driver after Dale Earnhardt to grace RCR’s gloried legacy. Nevertheless, coming into the 2024 season, Busch had big plans, and in the face of 4 out of 7 Chevrolet victories, courtesy of Hendrick Motorsports and Trackhouse so far this season. Can Busch stake a better claim for the RCR Chevrolets as the season heads to Martinsville?

Read More: Kyle Busch Refuses to Call Out Richard Childress & Co. Despite “Big Swings” Failing to Make a Dent at Richmond