RCR announces major change for Kyle Busch crew chief Randall Burnett, starting at Charlotte
The recent announcement of Randall Burnett‘s move to serve as crew chief for Connor Zilisch in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2026 has been met with a follow. Burnett will be replaced on Kyle Busch‘s team at Charlotte, Richard Childress Racing announced Wednesday.
RCR announced Burnett will be replaced by Andy Street as crew chief on the No. 8 car starting this weekend. RCR released a complete statement.
“With Richard Childress Racing and Randall Burnett parting ways at the end of the season, RCR has decided Andy Street will step in as crew chief of the No. 8 team with driver Kyle Busch effective this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway,” the statement read. “Burnett will continue contributing in a support role with the organization through the end of the season. Additional information regarding future competition roles will be shared at a later date.”
Randall Burnett first joined RCR in 2017, working with a range of drivers over the years including Busch, Tyler Reddick, and A.J. Allmendinger. Now, Trackhouse will entrust him to call the shots in Zilisch’s rookie season, a move that has generated plenty of conversation across the garage.
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On a recent episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast, Denny Hamlin reacted to the news. For Hamlin, the change makes sense for both sides.
“I think he needed a change. I think all parties need a change,” Hamlin stated. “Certainly, Kyle’s going through it right now. The performance is not there. I am a believer that Kyle Busch still has the ability to go win races. I do think that his cars are off, but I don’t think they’re off to the extent that we’re seeing on Sundays.
“I don’t know that Randall Burnett is making the car spin out every week or hit the wall every week. There’s got to be a little bit of shared responsibility in what’s going on with Kyle right now, but certainly it’s not good. So I think everyone just wanted a change of scenery — they’re all going to get it.”
On3’s Steve Samra also contributed to this report.