NASCAR: Possible Kurt Busch replacement emerges

Should Kurt Busch not return for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, would Tyler Reddick replace him? Apparently 23XI Racing have someone else in mind.

Kurt Busch is still facing an uncertain future in the NASCAR Cup Series, as he has not been behind the wheel of 23XI Racing’s #45 Toyota since his qualifying crash at Pocono Raceway left him with concussion-like symptoms back in July.

Busch’s contract with the team runs through the end of the 2023 season and contains an option for 2024, but there are some who believe his health concerns could lead him to retire after the 2022 season.

Team co-owner Denny Hamlin has said throughout this process that he is not putting any pressure on Busch to make a decision and that the decision is truly his, so as of now, the team are not planning on making any driver changes for next year.

In the event that Busch does opt to retire, one driver who has been seen as a possibility to replace him is Tyler Reddick. The current driver of Richard Childress Racing’s #8 Chevrolet has already signed with 23XI Racing and Toyota for 2024, but Richard Childress Racing recently signed Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch to replace him — in 2023.

Richard Childress Racing have said that they will be adding a third charter to field another entry for Reddick next year rather than cutting ties with him a year early, but they did not reveal where they got said charter, and there are rumors that perhaps this claim was nothing more than a bluff made in attempt to lead to an early contract buyout.

However, even if Richard Childress Racing don’t have a third charter, Reddick doesn’t appear to be in 23XI Racing’s plans at all until 2024, meaning that he would either have to drive a non-chartered car or drive for a Richard Childress Racing-affiliated team for somewhat of a “lame duck”, stopgap-type season in 2023.

Apparently 23XI Racing have another driver in mind if Busch decides to hang it up before next NASCAR season.

While Hamlin didn’t specify who exactly he had in mind, there seems to be a fairly obvious replacement candidate: John Hunter Nemechek.

When Busch was sidelined back in July, it was Ty Gibbs who was called upon to replace him, and he has competed in every Cup race for 23XI Racing since. Gibbs competes full-time for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Xfinity Series and is poised to replace Kyle Busch behind the wheel of the #18 Toyota at his grandfather’s Cup team next year.

But Hamlin revealed that Gibbs wasn’t the initial replacement driver 23XI Racing had in mind in the event of an emergency.

Here is what he had to say about the matter shortly after Kurt’s injury.

"“We had planned for John Hunter in January. We had him fit in the car. We had his insert, how much he needs to be raised up, the pedals. We had all of our presets. Then, as this happens, I talked to Joe [Gibbs], tell him what’s going on. Then, obviously, the ‘should we put Ty in the car’ question comes up.”"

With Gibbs likely moving to the #18 Toyota next year, he wouldn’t be in contention to replace Kurt. However, Nemechek is facing a much more uncertain future.

Nemechek made the move to leave his Cup ride with Front Row Motorsports and reunite with Toyota Racing Development in 2021, and he has competed for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the Truck Series ever since.

But with Kyle leaving Joe Gibbs Racing and Toyota for Richard Childress Racing and Chevrolet, Kyle Busch Motorsports will inherently have to switch to Chevrolet in order to continue competing in the Truck Series.

For Nemechek to stay with Toyota, he would need to find a new organization for which to compete. Perhaps he would be in contention to replace Gibbs (or even Brandon Jones, following his recently announced move to JR Motorsports for 2023) in the Xfinity Series, but given the fact that he has Cup experience, he would make the most sense for 23XI Racing.

However, the question then becomes what happens in 2024 when Reddick joins 23XI Racing. Will they have expanded from a two-car team to a three-car team by that point to be able to retain Nemechek?

It’s all still speculation at this point, and the goal is obviously for Kurt Busch to return for at least another season, perhaps paving the way for Tyler Reddick to replace him — or for Reddick himself to join in a third car. But until a return is confirmed, 23XI Racing appear to have a smart contingency plan in place with John Hunter Nemechek.