When things go wrong with a team or a driver in NASCAR, the crew chief is the first one to take the fall. This trend continued in Kyle Busch’s case. After 10 races with Jim Pohlman, the No. 8 team managed just a single top 10, and that was enough to force a reaction from Richard Childress. Pohlman was relieved of his duties from the No. 8 car, and Andy Street replaced him as Rowdy’s crew chief. On paper, this looks like a performance-based change, but there’s more to this story.

“If I had a crew chief that talked about me like that, I would fire his a** quickly, because that is unacceptable,” Harvick said on his podcast. He was referring to the radio exchange between spotter Derek Kneeland and Pohlman at Bristol. And for a crew chief who managed 10 races with a new team, his animated rant became a big talking point.

“What is the frickin problem now? Is the thing sideways, or is it plowing? What the f*** does it look like!?” Pohlman had responded to Busch during Bristol when he mentioned an issue with the car. But with no solution to their problem, he lost it on the radio. “Why? I don’t get it. We tightened it up, and why can’t it get in the f****** corner? Just same sh** every week.” Surprisingly, it was Kyle Busch who kept himself cool on the radio despite the struggles. He did manage to even Riley Herbst and spun him out late in the race.

Interestingly, when Pohlman joined the No. 8 at the start of the season, he hinted that his partnership with Busch could result in conflict. “There might be some spats, I’m not going to lie. He’s passionate. I’m passionate. The end goal is that he wants to win races, and he wants to win races at RCR, and he was crystal clear about that.” However, nobody expected them to run this badly, which eventually forced RCR to make a mid-season change.

Yet, despite the glaring issues within the team, veteran owner Richard Childress believes the decision was justified. “This move is about putting our people in the best position to succeed. We have strong talent across this organization, and we’re focused on having each person in the right position to help deliver the results we expect.” Clearly, the plan to bring Pohlman backfired, but that doesn’t make him a bad crew chief.

There’s no doubting Pohlman’s skills as a team leader; he won the O’Reilly Series title with Justin Allgaier and JRM. And it was a dream move for him to call the shots at the top of the pit box on Sunday. But it just didn’t work out. And according to Harvick, the partnership between Busch and Pohlman was a mismatch from the get-go. “Jim Pohlman’s just like Kyle Busch, you know, very vocal, very rough-and-tumble, fiery. That never sounded like it was going to work. I think Richard believes that Kyle Busch can get it done behind the wheel. It’s just a matter of putting him in the right scenario,” Harvick added.

As things stand, Andy Street will be leading the charge for Busch’s team for the rest of the 2026 season. Meanwhile, Pohlman will retain his spot with a new role on the leadership team. Hopefully, this move will be enough to turn the tide in Rowdy’s favor, as they are playing catch-up to make it to the Chase, sitting 27th in the points table.

What does Andy Street’s pairing with Kyle Busch say about his future with the team?

Many speculated that Kyle Busch would depart from the team when his contract ends at the end of the current season, and it seemed to be going that way, too. With the disappointing results the RCR–Busch pairing has yielded in the past three years, it only seemed natural. Moreover, this year’s start has been worse, as through 10 races, Busch has just one top-10 finish, along with 19 laps led and one DNF.

However, with Childress replacing Busch’s crew chief after just 10 races together, it tells a different story. It seems apparent that the 80-year-old wants Busch to stay with the team, and he is not afraid to pull any trigger to do that, even if it means changing the management.

The experience that Busch brings to the team is quite meaningful. He has been racing in the Cup Series field for over two decades now, and winning two championships has made him one of the most competitive drivers out there. A team like RCR, that doesn’t have an experienced driver signed, would greatly value the knowledge that the likes of Busch bring to the table.

Moreover, with the ‘Rowdy’ making some comments on the team’s future, the situation looks a bit clearer:

“It’s for me to show him that there’s a lot of work that goes into this. That you have to pour it in order to get the results out of it. So, yeah, we want to win; we want to be successful… So, trust me, this is my life, our life, everything we have known, and now another generation is coming in.”

So, it seems Busch has few options remaining and is now focused on his pairing with Andy Street in the upcoming races. His performance in the rest of the season could prove to be a statement of change, or perhaps another reason to bid farewell to the team.