Kyle Busch feels like he is starting over after the worst season of his glittering NASCAR Cup Series career.

The 40-year-old two-time is now far removed from the glory days which saw him grab two championships in 2015 and 2019, and 2025 brought new lows as his struggles continue.

Busch ended the year in 21st position in the Cup Series standings, his worst ever, and his haul of top-five finishes (three) was also a career low.

It was a tumultuous campaign for the Richard Childress Racing superstar, who also had crew chief Randall Burnett depart with five races remaining, to be replaced in the interim by Andy Street.

Now Busch gets a new fulltime chief for 2026 with Jim Pohlman moving over from JR Motorsports, where he was chief for Justin Allgaier in the Xfinity Series (O’Reilly Auto Parts Series from 2026).

Kyle Busch on crew chief change

Busch, who has not won a Cup Series race since 2023, knows the importance of quickly building a strong relationship with Pohlman - time is short with the 2026 season scheduled to get under on February 1 in Bowman Gray Stadium.

“I think this offseason will be different just based off of trying to build some camaraderie and some time with Jim,” he explained.

“Being able to spend some time with him and just kind of figure things out and what makes him tick, and obviously ways of things of what makes me tick and getting on the same page to start our season.

“Those are always the best ways of being the most successful with a crew chief is when you know when each other’s thinking, what they’re thinking and you can anticipate what’s next.”

Kyle and the road back to relevance

Busch has a spectacular Cup Series resume, which includes 63 races wins as well as that pair of titles, but he knows the road back to relevance will not be an easy one.

“There’s still a building process that’s got to take place to get us to that avenue. And being most consistent each and every week and finishing consistently in the top five is the easiest way to prove that you’re capable of your next win. So we’ve got to get to that point first.”

2025 sucked, must do better

One thing Kyle is not willing to dwell on at all is his 2025 campaign - so bad he says that he will not even dignify it with a grade.

Speaking ahead of the season finale in Phoenix, he said: “I’m not giving grades. It hasn’t been a good one. We all know that and got to get better.”