Brad Keselowski and his fellow veteran NASCAR drivers have spoken out about their opinions on the waning practice of Buschwhacking. Fewer full-time Cup Series drivers have competed in the Xfinity Series in recent times.
Buschwhacking – the nickname given when the Xfinity Series was formerly known as the Busch Series – has remained a hot topic of debate.
The practice of Cup Series drivers racing full-time on Saturdays was a common sight more than a decade ago. But over time, NASCAR set a hard limit (5) on the number of starts a Cup driver can make in lower series.
A recent online debate started by Matt Weaver on X (formerly Twitter) has caught the attention of several Cup Series drivers. These include in particular Dale Earnhardt Jr.Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski.
The RFK Racing co-owner explained that he would like to hold five races each year, but added that no major sponsor would prefer to invest money in an Xfinity race. He suggested they would prefer to invest in Sunday’s race, which usually attracts more attention.
“I can only speak for myself: I miss it. I would run 5 races, with a good team full time,” said Brad Keselowski, in response to Dale Jr.
“I can’t, because no major sponsors are interested, it takes 5-7 million a year to make it work. Any sponsor of that size usually goes into a cup car these days. So the choices are: pay or drive slow cars.”
Brad Keselowski, who previously owned a team in the Truck Series, knows the finances of teams in the junior category. He made his last start in the Xfinity Series in 2020 and made five starts in 2018.
Denny Hamlin Agrees With Brad Keselowski: ‘Buschwhacking Is Gone’
Denny Hamlin shared the same opinion as Brad Keselowski as he agreed with the Cup Series team owner. Hamlin added that Xfinity teams now require drivers to bring funds to secure a ride.
“The Buschwhacking is gone. Xfinity teams now need driver money. They would choose that over a Cup driver who could potentially win 10 out of 10 times in 2023.
“If they don’t have funding, they’ll throw a cut to a guy willing to step forward.”
Earlier this season, the Team Penske driver Joey Logano also highlighted the poor economic situation of the junior series.. He said even experienced drivers had to bring a lot of money for a single trip.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. gives his thoughts on Buschwhacking
Matt Weaver shared his “love-hate relationship” with the practice of Buschwhacking. He has expressed his desire to see more Cup Series drivers race in the Xfinity Series and wants the limit to be increased.
On the contrary, Dale Earnhardt Jr. suggested that increasing the limit would not help, as many Cup drivers were reluctant to make multiple starts in the junior series.
“There are a lot of Cup drivers who don’t even take part in a single race. Boundaries are not a factor in my opinion,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrote on X.”
“I don’t want to speculate on why they don’t choose to run. But until there is a solid 5-10 cup driver hitting the limit, increasing it won’t do much,” he added.
NASCAR fans also have mixed opinions on this practice which was popular a decade ago.
