Thursday, January 19, 2012

Busch Brothers Team For Monster Nationwide Effort

Kyle Busch will compete in the NASCAR Nationwide Series this season, driving a new #54 Toyota Camry fielded by his own Kyle Busch Motorsports team with sponsorship from Monster Energy.

The effort will be a family affair, with big brother Kurt sharing the seat in the car. Kyle announced moments ago that he will run between 13 and 15 Nationwide races in the Monster Energy Toyota, with Kurt running the balance of the schedule. Kyle is scheduled to run the first four races of 2012 – through Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, before yielding the wheel to Kurt. Kurt Busch will run the Nationwide restrictor plate races at Daytona and Talladega in the #1 Chevrolet fielded by James Finch’s Phoenix Racing. Neither driver will be eligible for the Nationwide Series championship – since both will compete for points on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series – but have targeted the 2012 owner’s championship as a major goal.

Kyle Busch said fielding an entry on the Nationwide Series has been a goal of his since chartering KBM in 2010. “With today’s announcement of Monster Energy as a primary sponsor and my brother Kurt as the second driver, we’ve accomplished that goal. (We) will settle for nothing less than adding a NASCAR Nationwide Series championship to the list.”

Kurt Busch said he is impressed with the job his brother has done with KBM, adding, “I’m proud to be a part of it. He won a Truck Series championship in his first year, and his team has kept on winning ever since. Now, it’s moving to the Nationwide Series, where the bar will remain high. His expectations are the same as mine, and we know each other better than anyone. We’re driven to win, and with Monster Energy driving us, we’ll be a tough team to beat.”

Veteran crew chief Mike Beam will be atop the pit box for the Busch Brothers, after winning eight Nationwide Series races a year ago with Carl Edwards at Roush Fenway Racing. “I am excited to join the KBM team and to have Monster Energy as our sponsor,” said Beam. “Kyle and Kurt are two of the best drivers in NASCAR. To contend for the 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series Owner’s championship with Monster Energy and to have all of the elements in place to make a great team, you cannot help being excited to be a part of this.”

16 comments:

  1. Anonymous3:39 PM

    thats cool but what about the #18 jgr car will kyle still run that car in nns?

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    1. Question was asked at presser and Kyle said he would not be driving any races for JGR in NNS.

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    2. He said the same on Sirius Speedway.

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  2. We had a technical glitch that caused two posts on this topic not to be published. If one of them was yours, please resubmit it. Apologies for the inconvenience.

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  3. I missed the announcement, did they say anything about the truck team? Is anyone running KBM trucks this year?

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  4. Brandon in TN4:05 PM

    So what about Carmichael? Does Monster ditch him?

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    1. Ricky will join us on Friday's show to announce his 2012 plans. Stay tuned!

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  5. Anonymous4:06 PM

    I am so damn excited!!! Now for the most important question-who will race at Bristol in August Kyle or Kurt???

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  6. J. R.4:12 PM

    I had a feeling with all the stuff with the Busch bros last season it was only a matter of time before they got together on some sort of effort.

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  7. Anonymous4:50 PM

    This truly is no supprise. The only unexpected pieces of info here are kyle driving too and who the sponsor is. I listen to Sirius speedway everyday and can't count how many callers have said the same thing.

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  8. Anonymous4:50 PM

    One, posting is still impossible on Internet Explorer (posting from Chrome) two, YAY Kyle and Kurt. Bravo. Being a BIG fan (and customer) of Monster products (including the delicious coffees) I am please Kyle secured such a prestigious sponsor. Third, I'm glad the Busch brothers are collaborating on this team. It gives Kurt a chance to improve his credentials, and gives him a chance to prove his worth to sponsors. Good on Monster Energy, distributed by Pepsi, no small company.

    Congratulation Kyle and Kurt.


    Doug from NJ

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  9. Hutch5:09 PM

    What happened to N.O.S. energy drink?

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  10. 2 Busch brothers driving...wonder how many crew chiefs they will need to hire to keep them in stock...

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  11. This will be a "Monster" all right. A Monster that prevents Nationwide regulars from winning races. Those NNS regulars deserve to be able to race for the winner's trophy and purse. The up and coming teams need that money to be able to continue racing. In my not humble opinion, andone running for points in the Cup races should be completely banned from NNS and NCWTS races. There is no viable reason why a Cup driver should be allowed to run away from the NNS regulars with a half lap or more lead and none of them having a chance to catch up and pass the Cup drivers. Instead of Kyle and his brother running this car, they should put a less experienced driver, perhaps one of the many that Kyle intentionally wrecked last season, in this car. NO CUP DRIVERS IN NNS AND NCWTS!

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  12. Anonymous2:02 PM

    Do you realize that if no cup drivers raced in those series, that they would likely die off? How many K&N series races do you see live on tv? Case and point!

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