When Kyle Busch walked into the Richard Childress Racing shop to officially sign his contract for the 2023 season, Richard Childress did not hand him a pen first. Instead he reached into his pocket, smiled, and handed Busch a watch, saying, “Hold my watch.” And if you follow the sport for long, you know that this was a hilarious nod to the infamous incident from 2011.

Back at Kansas Speedway, Childress took off his wristwatch and proceeded to put Kyle Busch in a headlock and punched him several times. It was a direct result of their rivalry heating up after Busch’s repeated run-ins with RCR drivers. Childress had warned him that he would personally take care of it, and he did. The two laughed about it when Busch came to RCR. And today, three years later, while that chapter came to an abrupt, heartbreaking end, Childress wants to ensure that a ‘Busch’ next takes the #8 to the victory lane.

In the aftermath of Busch’s tragic passing at just 41 years old, Richard Childress Racing officially announced it will suspend use of the No. 8 car entirely. Austin Hill, who had originally been expected to substitute into the No. 8 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, will instead drive the No. 33 moving forward.

In a handles, RCR announced, “Richard Childress Racing has elected to suspend use of the No. 8 and will run the No. 33 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and beyond. Kyle Busch was instrumental in the design of RCR’s stylized No. 8, and it has become synonymous with Kyle and an important symbol for his fans and the NASCAR industry. And the reason is deeply personal.

RCR says the No. 8 will now remain reserved for Busch’s son, Brexton Busch, whenever he is old enough to race at NASCAR’s highest level.  “No one can carry it forward to the level that he did. The No. 8 is reserved and ready for Brexton Busch when he is ready to go NASCAR racing.” For Childress, this is no longer just about a car number. It is about family. They actually went from rivals to family.

What makes the decision even more powerful is how impossible this relationship once seemed. Austin Dillon revealed in an emotional farewell message that he was actually the person who helped bring Busch and Childress together when Busch became a free agent before the 2023 season. And odd enough, both sides had the exact same concern.

Busch wondered whether Childress would ever truly want him at RCR given the history, and Childress thought of the same. But there, Dillion saw the common link of how wired these two men were. They were aggressive and emotional, and they hated losing more than anything. And then Childress went on to compare Busch to a legend.

Once the deal came together, Childress compared Busch to Dale Earnhardt. Around the ship he told people how Busch was the only modern-day driver that reminded him of the legend, all because he raced without fear and never backed down. And Busch rewarded that belief almost immediately.

In just the second race of the 2023 season, he drove the No. 8 to victory at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, a win that extended his record to 19 consecutive Cup seasons with at least one victory. He collected three wins across that debut season with RCR, all of which would become the final Cup victories of his career.

Even though results were hard to find later, his fire and passion never moved. Just days before he passed, he took the victory lane at Dover, a fitting final chapter for him. The organization is not simply retiring a number out of grief. It is protecting something they believe belongs to the Busch family now.

Why the No. 8 means so much in NASCAR

The No. 8 already carried deep NASCAR history long before Busch arrived. It was Dale Earnhardt Jr. who first gave the number its modern identity when he raced it for Dale Earnhardt Inc., the team his father built for him. Jr. never drove for RCR during his career, but when Childress brought the number back, it was Busch who inherited it—even though Tyler Reddick had also competed in the same car way before ‘Rowdy.’

It is worth noting here that NASCAR doesn’t usually retire numbers, since they are more about race teams and owners rather than individual drivers or the league as a whole. Even Earnhardt Sr.’s #3 was never formally retired and was reintroduced with Austin Dillon.

Forbes had further explained in its report that the sanctioning body remains hesitant to retire numbers because the current pool is relatively small. What teams can do, however, is choose not to use a number they control. That is an entirely voluntary act, and it is pretty rare itself. Childress did it once before after Earnhardt’s death in 2001. Now he is doing it again for Busch.

And someday, if Brexton Busch decides to follow his father’s path into NASCAR, the No. 8 will still be waiting for him.