LAS VEGAS, Nev: In a challenging second half of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series for the 23XI race team, co-owner Denny Hamlin remains positive and looks forward to the final races on the schedule while also moving ahead to the team’s future.
Expecting to have first-year driver Kurt Busch in the No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota compete for the Cup Series championship, that plan was thwarted in a qualifying crash at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway in July and has since left him sidelined with a concussion.
Making sure to check in at least monthly, Hamlin and Busch would ultimately produce a plan for the rest of the season and beyond.
As this season marched on and without medical clearance, Busch and Hamlin recently met with Busch giving his blessing for the team to start exploring options for next season.
Busch knew that even if he would be medically cleared to return to competition, it would be an uphill climb and with the competition incredibly tight – the 2004 Cup Series champion refused to be a liability to the 23XI Racing organization next season.
“I really wanted Kurt to be part of this for at least two years, possibly a third year,” explained Hamlin. “But in the short amount of time he was part of our organization he made it better.”
With Busch announcing Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he would not return to the driver’s seat full-time, the door swung open for 23XI Racing and Richard Childress Racing to come to an agreement to allow Reddick to join his new home a year earlier than anticipated.
“You give yourself options,” added Hamlin. “It was a convenient option for us. Inconvenient that we lost Kurt. We still wish that we could have him full-time next year and that would be ideal, but we’re ok with the transition that we’re having.”
Hamlin is encouraged that Busch will be an asset to the team moving forward as the plan is for Busch to continue with the team in a new role that is yet to be determined.
“It’s gonna be tough,” sounded Hamlin. “We don’t know exactly what his future and exact role is with our team. We just know that we want him, and we want to figure out something that is good for him. To dictate his schedule, how much he wants to work, what does he want to do and then we can accommodate that.”
Looking ahead to its longevity, 23XI wants to be a pipeline for the elite young guns and to be an investment for the future.
“Making sure I can keep this team trending in the right direction is so important for us,” Hamlin said. “We don’t want to plateau. “We don’t wanna spend any years just ok, they grew up better and they kind of just level off for a year.
“I wanna keep going on a pretty steady incline.”
Follow Grace Krenrich on Twitter @Grace3140.
