Kurt Busch announced Saturday morning at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that he has not been cleared to compete for the rest of the 2022 season and will subsequently step away from racing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2023. The 2004 Cup Series champion will scale back to racing part-time if he is cleared to return to the driver's seat.
Busch has missed much of the second half of the season after suffering a concussion in a crash at Pocono Raceway, one which resulted in him struggling with balance and coordination when his heart rate is elevated. Busch has estimated that he is 95 percent recovered.
Tyler Reddick, who had previously been announced as joining 23XI Racing starting in 2024, will be released from his contract at Richard Childress Racing and take Busch's place in the No. 45 Toyota next season. Busch declined to call his decision a retirement in either a statement or a news conference, instead leaving the door open to race select events.
— Kurt Busch (@KurtBusch) October 15, 2022
"I'm still competitive, passionate, and I want to continue to perform at my core values, and to give back to a community that has been my life since I left Las Vegas to pursue a professional racing career over 22 years ago," Busch said. "Next year my contributions to racing may look a little different, but I will continue to give my best to this sport. And, if I'm cleared, maybe you'll see me at select races."
Busch was the longest tenured full-time driver in the Cup Series, having made his Cup debut in 2000 before going full-time with Roush Racing the following season. While speaking to reporters, Busch indicated that accidents he has had through the years began to add up physically, culminating in his crash at Pocono that has kept him out of the driver's seat since.
Given the length of his career and what he's been able to accomplish -- in addition to a Cup Series championship, Busch also has 34 career wins including the 2017 Daytona 500 and the 2010 Coca-Cola 600 -- Busch indicated that he is at peace with his circumstances, saying that they only slightly altered his timeline of when he was going to step away from racing full-time. Just days before his crash at Pocono, Busch had hinted in a television interview that he may have been targeting the end of the 2023 season for retirement.
As he looks towards a part-time schedule should he be cleared to return to racing, Busch mentioned tracks like Darlington, Watkins Glen, and Michigan among those he would be interested in racing at in addition to bucket list items like competing internationally at Le Mans. Busch also stated that he has been in discussions with Fox Sports about potential television work, which he has already done over the past several years as a member of the NASCAR Truck Series broadcast team.
Busch will finish his 2022 season with one win at Kansas to go with five top fives and eight top 10s in 20 races.
