Kevin Harvick reacts to Randall Burnett leaving RCR, Kyle Busch for Connor Zilisch in 2026

It was revealed on Tuesday that Randall Burnett will serve as crew chief for Connor Zilisch during his debut season in the NASCAR Cup Series next year. He’s leaving his post as crew chief for the Richard Childress Racing No. 8 team and Kyle Busch, a position he’s held since 2023.

Burnett joined RCR in 2017. He previously worked with Busch, Tyler Reddick and A.J. Allmendinger. Trackhouse is entrusting him to call the shots in Zilisch’s first season in Cup.

Regardless of his potential with Zilisch, Kevin Harvick has some questions about how this all went down. He reacted to the news on the latest edition of Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour, thinking Burnett’s decision had a stark effect on Busch’s performance over the past few weeks.

“I think when you look at the performance of the No. 8 the last couple of weeks, it probably reflects that there’s something going on,” Harvick explained. “Usually when those things happen, they’re handled one of two ways—either badly or well. And I think back to my time at RCR. The best thing I ever did was walk into Richard Childress’ office and tell him that I was leaving. It wasn’t great in that moment, but it showed him the respect of getting way out in front of it.

“It’s not easy, it’s not fun to sit in that room and have that conversation, but it allows you to ask: How do we build something around this to keep the performance where it needs to be? And we still won races that last year. But with this situation coming up so late, think about the position it puts RCR in, having to find a crew chief and change the No. 8 car and the way that program is running. So, to me, it doesn’t feel like it’s been handled very well.”

It’s part of a larger issue for the No. 8 Chevrolet team. The new crew chief RCR gets in there for Busch will be tasked with rejuvenating the former champion’s career, as he winds down as a full-time Cup Series racer.

“We all want to see Kyle Busch win. I mean, it’s good for the sport. It’s Kyle freaking Busch, right? There’s nothing worse,” Harvick added. “And look, as much as I’ve gone through moments where I hated Kyle Busch—hated him with a passion at times—that’s all come full circle. Now we can communicate, and we’ve got a good relationship.

“But I just can’t imagine Kyle Busch going out like this. It’s bad for everything. It’s bad for the sport. It’s bad for him. It’s bad for everything that says ‘Kyle Busch.’ And I just—I hate to see where it’s at right now.”

Zilisch’s career is just starting, and he’s hoping to reach the heights Busch did throughout his career. However, the RCR wheelman isn’t hanging up his wheel just yet — Harvick wants him back in Victory Lane, but time will tell if fans will get that sight again.

— On3’s Nick Geddes contributed to this article.