In a rumor-turned-truth in the NASCAR garage, Randall Burnett will depart Richard Childress Racing at the end of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season to join Trackhouse Racing as the new crew chief for Connor Zilisch. Burnett has guided Kyle Busch and the No. 8 Chevrolet since 2023, after previously winning 4 races with Tyler Reddick at RCR. Before that, he worked at JTG Daugherty Racing with A. J. Allmendinger.

The Busch-Burnett pairing, however, has not delivered the expected results. Over the past two seasons, they have gone winless and failed to make the playoffs, a sharp contrast to Burnett’s earlier successes at RCR. He now transitions from leading the sport’s winningest active driver to working with Zilisch, a 19-year-old phenom who has taken NASCAR’s developmental ranks by storm.

Trackhouse sees Burnett as a key piece in Zilisch’s Cup Series future. The teenager has already scored nine wins in the 2025 Xfinity season, putting him in reach of Kyle Busch’s record. Zilisch has also made three Cup starts, finishing as high as 11th at Atlanta, and will replace Daniel Suárez in 2026 to compete alongside Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen. RCR has not yet named Burnett’s replacement atop the No. 8 pit box.

This is a developing story.