Switching teams can be turbulent for NASCAR drivers, but for Kyle Busch, it has escalated into something much worse. While he has most definitely battled with his car in the Cup Series, his episodes of disappointing performances have followed him up till the Snowball Derby, where he barely made an impact during qualifying.

The Richard Childress Racing driver only managed to qualify 32nd for the event, also called the Daytona 500 of short track racing, considering the importance it holds in the Super Late Model Series. While Busch has been a strong performer in the 300-lap contest, winning it twice, the driver was already aware of the challenges.

“Your race car is only going to go as fast as your race car can go,” Busch explained. “But Snowball Derby qualifying, there’s so many different conditions. The weather forecast, obviously, this week’s been thrown way out of proportion with that. But like, the dew comes in and sets in on the track sometimes. So your draw is very important.”

Thankfully, he was able to change his fortunes just minutes after suffering the setback.

In the last-chance qualifier, Busch led the field after starting 31st, and earned one of six spots in the main derby. Others like Cory Hall, Seth Christensen, Erik Jones, Noah Gragson, Mike Hopkins, Conner Jones and Austin Nason failed to make it.

But, despite Busch’s redemption, his earlier 32nd finish was enough to worry fans, especially coupled with his recent Cup Series season.

Fans worried about Busch’s future in racing

“He looks mentally checked out,” a fan mentioned, reacting to Busch’s performance at the Derby. While many feel that age has been a factor for his performance, this particular user felt otherwise. “He’s not washed. I believe he still has it in him but seems like driving those RCR shitboxes are affecting him.”

Busch is seemingly not the 40-year-old who has had a tough time after switching teams. His Cup Series performance took a serious hit after he moved to Richard Childress Racing, similar to what happened with Lewis Hamilton in Formula 1. He switched to Ferrari this season and marked his worst F1 season, statistically. Many noticed this similarity, writing, “He’s our Lewis Hamilton no doubt.”

“At what point do we have to admit to ourselves that maybe he’s not the Rowdy that he was.”

This was another sentiment that fans shared on social media. Throughout his career, Busch was known for his resilience and rough driving style, earning him the two championships in 2015 and 2019. However, some feel that his form has roughed up over the course of recent seasons.

At the same time, Busch has been preparing his son, Brexton, for motorsports. The 9-year-old has been a strong performer in lower-level series. Understandably, Busch spends a lot of time mentoring Brexton, which a fan mentioned: “Getting beat by his son in some of the races they do together might be taking a toll on him too.”

But at the same time, it seems almost impossible to ignore the difficult phase that Busch is going through in the final stages of his career, as one of the comments shared this sentiment: “This dude just cannot catch a break these days.”

Kyle Busch has remained a fan-favorite for a long time, and he still gains massive cheers for even the smallest bits of improvement in performances. Understandably, his time with RCR hasn’t been very smooth, but he will be returning to the Cup Series next year as well, with his new crew chief, Jim Pohlman. Can he showcase more consistent results, or perhaps that long-awaited victory in 2026? Only time will tell.