Kyle Busch has yet to achieve a top-10 finish at Martinsville while racing for Richard Childress Racing (RCR). The Chevy team has struggled this season and has not been able to contend for race wins as a team of their caliber should. It’s not just the team that has been struggling, but Busch himself has also been facing difficulties. Considering his recent struggles at Martinsville in the Next-Gen era, both the team and Busch are preparing themselves for disappointment.
In his last three races at Martinsville, Kyle Busch has finished outside of the top-20 and has only managed to secure a single top-10 finish at this track. It’s quite unusual for the veteran driver to struggle at this track, as he has previously won in all three national series at the 0.526-mile facility. When asked about his difficulties, Busch admitted that traffic and lack of tire wear are the reasons behind his struggles.
Busch and the No:8 team are working on improving their performance by referring to notes from past races. If they had more test times and practice like in the past, they wouldn’t have faced such difficulties. However, the team is not relying heavily on the simulator for short-tracks, as they have not found much correlation in performance.
Interestingly, Busch’s teammate has been struggling the most in the Next-Gen era. He ended last year without a win and has been finishing outside the top-20 in a car that is capable of a top-15 finish. As they head into Martinsville, he is hoping for a good day and to secure some stage points.
The RCR duo needs to step up their game and perform well on the track. The crew, especially the No:8 team, needs to improve their performance as they have let Busch down multiple times this season. If they are able to have a solid day on Sunday, they have the potential to turn their season around.