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DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 04: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Toyota, walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 04, 2022 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
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DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 04: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Toyota, walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on September 04, 2022 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
For the 2023 NASCAR Cup season, Kyle Busch is joining the Richard Childress Racing team. Already, preparations for the upcoming season are well underway for RCR. Recently, news broke that they were recruiting former Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Keith Rodden. According to reports, Rodden is expected to be the crew chief for the #3 car of Austin Dillon.
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In essence, he will be replacing Justin Alexander, who is Dillon’s primary crew chief. Of course, many people were thrilled to see Rodden back in the NASCAR Cup scene. The last time he acted in a crew chief capacity, he was with Chip Ganassi Racing and Jamie McMurray. Prior to that, he was with Hendrick Motorsports and Kasey Kahne.
How does Rodden’s recruitment affect Kyle Busch and his RCR entry?
Admittedly, it shouldn’t affect him too badly, but it does make one question who will be Busch’s crew chief. Obviously, Toyota is not going to let go of Ben Beshore, just for Busch’s sake.
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So, the 2-time Cup Series champion will have to rely on RCR to provide him with a crew chief. One option could be Tyler Reddick’s current crew chief, Randall Burnett, but no one knows if Burnett will follow Reddick.
Great to see @keithrodden back at the track! 👊🏼👊🏼 https://t.co/COClTrQvxJ
— Rodney Childers (@RodneyChilders4) October 28, 2022
Austin needs more than a crew chief, needs to learn how to drive.
— aaron boggs (@aaronb2348) October 28, 2022
Thats cool whos going to be rowdy crew chief for the 8 car
— Alexander Jordan – S (@Alexand56373125) October 28, 2022
Legend, get it done KR!
— Andrew Stallings 📈 (@AStallings88) October 28, 2022
There were some fans who took a dig at Austin Dillon’s driving ability, saying that he needed to learn to drive. According to them, that was a more pressing issue than finding a crew chief. Others wondered if Rodden was a good choice, especially since his stint with Kasey Kahne was nothing spectacular.
USA Today via Reuters
Aug 28, 2022; Daytona Beach, Florida, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Dillon (3) celebrate performs a burnout after winning the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
However, that notion was quickly defended, with fans saying that Kahne’s performance was a combination of many factors. One was his poor health, and the other was Hendrick Motorsports, making everyone run with Jimmie Johnson’s setup.
Think their problems were Kasey’s health and Hendrick was trying to make everyone drive JJ’s setups. Rodden was with Kasey for years and way before Hendrick. I hope he does well and will be pulling a bit more for AD.
— BenKlee (@ben_klee) October 28, 2022
Good luck next year @keithrodden!
— Jason LaVere (@JasonLaVere28) October 29, 2022
Jesus how many crew chiefs has Austin Dillon had thus far??
Huh why so many changes?— Mike Riggs (@MikeRig93229857) October 28, 2022
They need to get rid of dillon not the crew chiefs😅
— Sander (@Sander76905151) October 28, 2022
Other people commented that Dillon has gone through a lot of crew chiefs, and Rodden was adding his name to a long list. Finally, some Twitter users suggested that Dillon should be the one to go and not his crew chiefs.
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What are your thoughts on this? Let us know.
Written by
Edited by
Paras Pande