It’s been a month since Kyle Busch passed away, and yet, those at Richard Childress Racing keep him in their thoughts every time they take to the track. Austin Hill, on Saturday, won RCR’s first race since the tragedy, driving the No. 21 RCR Chevrolet to victory in San Diego. He had to work hard for it, chasing down Taylor Gray late in the race, but managed to get to Victory Lane, securing his first road-course win in the series. And in the aftermath, he admitted how it was Busch’s memory that kept him going in those final stages.

Austin Hill “talked” to Kyle Busch in the closing stages of the United Rentals Driven to Serve 250

An emotional Hill said post-race, “Talking to this guy a little bit. Down the straightaways, I’m like, ‘Man! Kyle, if you’re here, give me something. Let me find another gear.’ For whatever reason, the car started coming to life, and the two leaders got together. There was blood in the water behind the #54. I knew it was going to be tough to get around him, but it was going to be a battle. When I got clear, I was very surprised to see how much of a gap I got.”

Hill started 4th in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race in San Diego and remained in contention throughout what turned out to be a chaotic afternoon.

There were eight cautions, two red flags, and a massive 25-car crash on lap 35 when Mayer totally misjudged Turn 1 on a restart. He clipped the inside wall, shot across the track, and slammed Anthony Alfredo straight into the outside barriers. Hill got caught up in the chaos, but managed to escape only with minior damages to his car. It was the lucky break the 32-year-old needed.

With just three laps to go, Carson Kvapil was spun into the tire barriers by Gray, handing the latter the race lead. But Gray soon began struggling with his car, allowing Hill to close the gap. As the field took the white flag, Hill made his move on the inside of Turn 3 and got past Gray. From there, he pulled away and crossed the chequered flag 1.127 seconds ahead of Gray. It was RCR’s first victory in the series since the opening weekend in Daytona, when Hill won the United Rentals 300.

Hill celebrated in the immediate aftermath of the race by taking his car over to the No. 8 painted into the infield grass, paying the perfect tribute to Busch, who had become a cherished member of the RCR setup over the years.

Busch died on May 21 after bacterial pneumonia rapidly progressed into sepsis. And with this being their first victory since then, Richard Childress, the team’s owner, was overcome with emotion. Having now lost two generational racing greats, Busch and Dale Earnhardt, during his time as a team owner, Childress dedicated the emotional victory at Naval Base Coronado to both men.

“I know he [Busch] was looking down. [Dale] Earnhardt’s looking down,” Childress said. “All the greats up there, and you know, it’s just been a great day and a great day for us.”

For Hill, the moment was especially significant. After all, he has been the driver tasked with replacing Busch in the Cup Series, driving the No. 33 RCR Chevrolet. Before San Diego, he had finished 27th, 27th, and 18th in his three Cup Series starts in the car. He had a chance to carry that momentum from the NOAPS race into Sunday’s event, but sadly, that didn’t happen.

Tough Cup Series race for Austin Hill and RCR

Richard Childress Racing has not performed particularly well over the last few years. Busch also struggled in the No. 8 Chevrolet, going winless throughout both the 2024 and 2025 seasons. The team’s most recent victory came last August, when Austin Dillon won at Richmond.

This season, however, they have remained winless. Dillon hasn’t come particularly close to Victory Lane either, with just one top-10 finish: a sixth-place result at Watkins Glen. As for Hill, he has endured a torrid start to life in the No. 33 car, with his Anduril 250 outing ending in  DNF.

After qualifying 10th, Hill’s race unraveled on a Lap 32 restart when an aggressive move on Connor Zilisch triggered a multi-car collision at the first corner. The wreck, which saw Hill’s No. 33 slide into the outside wall, eliminated pre-race favorites Zilisch and Shane van Gisbergen, while also collecting Ty Gibbs and several others.

This allowed 23XI Racing’s Corey Heim to make a late-race charge and join the battle for the lead. He scrapped with teammate Tyler Reddick, who blew his left-front tire in the process, and ultimately reached Victory Lane, finishing ahead of Bubba Wallace, bringing home a 1-2 for the team co-owned by Denny Hamlin. Heim took full advantage of the chaos, and a dejected Hill accepted full responsibility for the incident.

“I guess I just carried a little too much pace (into Turn 1) than I’ve been doing all day,” he said after the race. “And just right when I touched him, he got into the wall and kind of sucked me into him, just couldn’t stay off. Hate it for the 88 team, hate it for Connor. Apologize to those guys on the 88 team.”

Zilisch, who admitted he was concerned for his own safety and that of the other drivers, cooled down after hearing Hill’s explanation. When a reporter told him that Hill had blamed his tires for the incident, Zilisch simply replied, “I believe him.”