Richard Childress explains how Next Gen car changed how RCR operates

Richard Childress decided to go in-depth regarding how the Next Gen era in NASCAR has affected Kyle Busch, Austin Dillon and Richard Childress Racing as a whole.

The legendary team owner’s organization has struggled a bit since the advent of NASCAR’s new car, and it’s been disappointing for fans and media members alike to see such a historic team deal with a myriad of issues. During an episode of Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour from earlier this fall, Childress tried to make sense of it.

“Well, this car, Kevin, has become such an engineer-driven car,” Childress told Kevin Harvick. “When we very first started it, I felt really good about this car. Then, they kept taking spoiler away and adding horsepower. They were doing so much to it. Now, it’s so hard to pass.

“Before you had enough of spoiler, it’s always been tough to pass. But I think the changes they’ve made has been difficult for the racing. That’s my opinion.”

While some have made light of Dillon’s ability behind the wheel, it’s been tough to see Busch struggle at RCR. The team as a whole was trending in a negative way over the past year and change, and it’s had an effect on the company, forcing Childress to look outside the motorsports world to keep his organization running.

“As a company, we were going to end up having to lay a lot of people off. I think about 40 people when we got this car, because we build our own chassis and do so much work at RCR,” Childress added. “Instead, now we’re doing a lot of military work. We’re doing a lot of other outside work.

“We’ve actually hired more people and looking to hire more people now for some of that kind of work. I’ll take the big responsibility for my employees and our family.”

At the least, RCR seems to be in good standing, even if they’ve been inconsistent on the track over the past two seasons. Still, they had their shot at a couple wins in 2024, like Busch’s razor-thin losses in Atlanta and during the summer trip to Daytona, and Dillon’s controversial trip to Victory Lane at Richmond.

Time will tell what the future holds for Richard Childress and his racing team, but their legacy is something that can never be taken away. Hopefully they’re able to figure out how to be more successful with the Next Gen car in 2025.