Joe Gibbs Racing names interim drivers for No. 54 XFINITY Series car
As Kyle Busch continues to recover from injuries sustained in a wreck at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 21, Joe Gibbs Racing announced the interim driver schedule for the No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota in the XFINITY Series.
Sprint Cup Series regular Denny Hamlin will pilot the car this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, as well as at events at Auto Club Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Erik Jones, who drove the No. 54 Toyota to a 13th-place finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend, will fill in for Busch at Phoenix International Raceway and Richmond International Raceway.
Road racing ace Boris Said will pick up the majority of the races in the No. 54 Toyota, driving in events at Talladega Superspeedway, Iowa Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Road America and Kentucky Speedway.
"We hate this for Kyle obviously and I think everyone is focused on getting him back healthy," said team owner Joe Gibbs. "We can't thank Monster Energy and all of our partners enough for working with us while Kyle is recovering and certainly it is nice to have Denny and Erik ready to fill in. We're also excited that Boris will have the opportunity to drive the car for seven races in 2015."
"We are excited to be able to have talent like Denny, Erik and road racing guru Boris Said to come in and back up Kyle in tough times. Of course we miss Kyle and wish he was out there for us, but we have full confidence in all our guys," said Vice President of Sports Marketing for Monster Energy Mitch Covington.
Busch is resting in his Charlotte, North Carolina home, but there is "no specific timetable" in place for his return.
