Richard Childress Racing announced this Friday that it will stop using the number 8, the same number that Kyle Busch carried on the doors of his Chevrolet from 2023 onward and that the driver himself helped redesign when he joined the team. Beginning with Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, RCR will compete with the number 33. "No one can carry it forward at the level he did. The 8 is reserved and ready for Brexton Busch when he is ready to compete in NASCAR," the team said in a brief statement released at the end of the morning.

Photo By Carlos Castillo

Immediate replacement in the Cup Series and extension of the No. 33

Austin Hill will be the one to occupy the seat left vacant by Busch in the Cup Series, now with the number 33. Hill had already raced with that same number in part‑time programs with RCR since 2022 and was the first name the team confirmed when Busch's medical absence was announced on Thursday. Friday's statement extends the use of the 33 "from now on," without specifying who will drive it after the Charlotte race. Before Busch arrived at RCR, the team's number 8 had been used by drivers such as Daniel Hemric and Tyler Reddick in the Cup Series. Busch, nonetheless, gave it its own identity by directly participating in the design of the typography that identified the car during his final seasons.

Reconfiguration of the Truck Series program

In the Truck Series, the eight‑race part‑time program that Busch had with Spire Motorsports for 2026 is also being reconfigured immediately. Corey Day, part of the Hendrick Motorsports development program, will drive the Chevrolet number 7 this Friday night in the North Carolina Education Lottery 200, the same truck that Busch was going to pilot. Day had already raced with Spire in the category and takes over the first of the dates that Busch had scheduled before the calendar continued at Nashville, North Wilkesboro, and Richmond.

Photo By Carlos Castillo

Kyle Busch's legacy and the reservation of the No. 8 for his son

Brexton Busch, 10 years old, is the eldest son of Kyle and Samantha Busch. He competes in karts and legend cars, and his father used to share the track with him in dirt races. RCR's reservation of the number 8 has no defined timeline, but the team's message points to Brexton being the one to inherit that number when he reaches NASCAR. The majority of Kyle Busch's Cup Series career was spent with the number 18 at Joe Gibbs Racing, with which he won his two championships in 2015 and 2019 and most of his 63 victories in the top category. The number 8 became linked to his image in the final stage of his career, and RCR has decided that no one else will use it until his son is ready to compete.