
USA Today via Reuters
Apr 3, 2022; Richmond, Virginia, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch (18) waves to fans in the stands prior to the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports

USA Today via Reuters
Apr 3, 2022; Richmond, Virginia, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch (18) waves to fans in the stands prior to the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-USA TODAY Sports
No topic or speculative piece of news is as big as the possibility of Kyle Busch leaving Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota after this season. That is something, if it happens, and in the circumstances, it’s predicted to happen, would be a total disaster for both the Japanese OEM and JGR.
Obviously, they’re doing all they can to prevent such a thing from happening, to get Busch a reasonable but appropriate sponsor as the replacement of outgoing Mars Inc.
And that won’t come easy.
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This was something that Toyota’s Racing Development President David Wilson also admitted.
In a recent interview, Wilson was asked whether he was confident of getting a deal done, or was he painting the picture of Kyle Busch waving goodbye to them, to which his answer was, let’s just say, not exactly reassuring.
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“I wish I could handicap it for you… but I just can’t. We’re in a bad place right now… we’ve got some tremendously heavy lifting in front of us,” Wilson confessed.
Toyota needs a contingency plan for Kyle Busch in the worst-case scenario
The Toyota Racing boss described that in a situation in which they’re unable to find a sponsor, the right sponsor, they’ll have to resort to building “a bridge somewhere.”
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He emphasized that Toyota and JGR are trying to find “a path” to keep Busch with them.

via Getty
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 16: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M’s Toyota, climbs into his car during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series 64th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2022 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
But should that path don’t present itself, or they’re unable to find it, or they’re unable to bridge the gap between the two points, they, in Wilson’s opinion, certainly need some backup measures.
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“We have to have contingency plans,” Wilson described. “Rest assured, we’re thinking about every way this can go.”
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