"It didn’t pay off": Kyle Busch admits Talladega gamble backfired as RCR star focuses on ending 2025 on a high note

Kyle Busch touched upon his Talladega Superspeedway gamble and revealed how it backfired. Speaking about the race, the Richard Childress Racing driver stated that he wanted to forget what happened on Sunday and focus on the remaining two races to end his season on a high.

Busch hasn't been to the victory lane since 2023, and 2025 was no different. Despite trying his best, Kyle Busch was unable to pick up a win, qualify for the playoffs, and contest for championships.

After missing out on the chance in the regular season championship, Busch tried to end his day on a high note at Talladega, but it backfired. Speaking about this, here's what the RCR driver said:

"We had a fast No. 8 Chevrolet today at Talladega Superspeedway. We qualified up front, the car drove great, and we led laps. I gambled on the top line at the end and it didn’t pay off. We still have two races left in 2025 to get our Richard Childress Racing machine back to victory lane and that remains the focus.”

Kyle Busch started his race from third place after a decent qualifying on Saturday. However, he lost all his advantage in Stage 1 as he dropped down to 20th place. In Stage 2, he improved to 13th place, only to end up in 19th place in the final stage.

Chase Briscoe of Joe Gibbs Racing won the race and qualified for the Championship 4. He qualified alongside his JGR teammate, Denny Hamlin. With two places remaining, the final playoff race at Martinsville will be the decider.

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Kyle Busch believes Jim Pohlman's leadership quality makes him an ideal candidate at RCR

Richard Childress Racing driver Kyle Busch is of the opinion that Jim Pohlman's experience and leadership make him an ideal choice at RCR. Pohlman is all set to leave his current team, JR Motorsports, and move to RCR to crew chief Busch next year.

Justin Allgaier speaks to crew chief Jim Pohlman (L) and Hall of Famer and JR Motorsports team owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr. reacts after an on-track incident during the NASCAR Xfinity Series Pennzoil 250 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on July 26, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. - Source: Getty

"I feel like a guy like that who has been able to jump into a system that’s been somewhat successful and improve it and to get results out of it and to almost win two championships already — going for a third — that led to some really good leadership traits for me and improvement of organization," Kyle Busch told the media.

Jim Pohlman has worked with RCR already and moved out to join JRM in 2023. At JRM, he won the 2024 Xfinity Series with Justin Allgaier. Even this year, they have qualified for the Championship 4.