TALLADEGA, Ala. — Kyle Busch said that Jim Pohlman’s impact at JR Motorsports was a key factor in selecting him as his new crew chief even though Pohlman has limited experience with the Next Gen car.
Richard Childress Racing announced this week that Pohlman will be Busch’s crew chief next season. Pohlman previously had been at RCR in a research and development role that saw him work on the Next Gen car early in the vehicle’s development.
Pohlman is in his third season as Justin Allgaier’s crew chief in the Xfinity Series at JR Motorsports. Allgaier won the Xfinity title last year and Allgaier remains in contention for this year’s championship.
“They’ve had good cars for a long time, but it seems like the last two, three years they’ve really taken a step higher,” Busch said Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway, noting Pohlman’s tenure with JRM. “Whether he’s the one responsible for that, I doubt it, but it’s a whole group, right?
“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.”
Ryan Blaney is last among the playoff drivers, 31 points below the cutline entering Sunday’s race.
Allgaier said Pohlman’s impact is evident throughout JR Motorsports.
“I look at the JR Motorsports and the processes that we employ and I can say, ‘OK, that was a Jim process, that was a Jim process, that was Jim process,” Allgaier said Saturday.
Only three of the eight playoff drivers qualified in the top 10 for Sunday’s Cup race on NBC and Peacock.
JR Motorsports cars had won 17 races this season before Saturday’s Xfinity race at Talladega. JRM is the first team since Joe Gibbs Racing in 2016 to win at least 17 races in the Xfinity season.
Busch said that Pohlman stood out to him in their conversations.
“I would say his passion and just the leadership conversations that we had,” Busch said. “You’re not hiring a guy based off of results in a Cup car, right? That’s yet to be seen and to be made. Hopefully, he’s the guy that can help lead us in the right direction with not just the 8 car but also RCR as a whole.”
Pohlman was a crew chief for Juan Pablo Montoya for 17 Cup races in 2011. He has been a Cup crew chief in three races since.
Busch is winless in his last 90 Cup starts. His eighth-place finish last weekend at Las Vegas tied for his best result in the last 14 races. He has not led a lap in the last 21 races.
Busch qualified third for Sunday’s Cup race (2 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock).
