“We certainly don’t like it”: NASCAR executive breaks silence on recurrent loose wheels after Kyle Busch’s Las Vegas incident

NASCAR Cup Series Managing Director Brad Moran discussed the loose wheel ordeal during the recently concluded Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. During the race, Kyle Busch and Chase Briscoe suffered from a loose wheel issue and saw their race jeopardized before their eyes.

Busch and Briscoe made brief contact (separately) with the wall during the race and saw their wheel get loose, and roll away. As a result, both drivers had to face the mandatory two-lap penalties, which ended every advantage they had during the race.

The loose wheel ruined the #19 and #8 drivers' race, and they were critical of NASCAR. Addressing it, and sharing his thoughts on the loose wheel ordeal, here's what the NASCAR Cup Series MD told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio:

"Yeah, we've been discussing with the teams. It's kind of odd that we saw a couple in the past few weeks. And then we saw two on the track. We certainly don't like it. It goes back a couple of years to 2022 when we were having some issues."

"But we worked together as an industry and we got on top of that. And for whatever reason, it appears that we've got something going on. I've been discussing it with a lot of the crew chiefs and managers. And yeah, I wouldn't so quickly say it was the wheel weight," he added.

Interestingly, Christopher Bell also faced a similar problem, but he used his mind and got it tightened from teammate Chase Briscoe's pit box. This resulted in a penalty, and he was placed at the back of the pack for pitting outside his designated pit box.

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NASCAR Cup Series MD reveals the cause of loose wheel problem

NASCAR Cup Series driver Josh Berry (21) celebrates his victory following the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway - Source: Imagn

During his interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Brad Moran, the NASCAR Cup Series also revealed the probable cause that could lead to a loose wheel.

"We do know that that did happen on one occasion, but again, I think it's about time as well and timing and trying to get as much done as you can in the shortest period of time. Again, you push it to the limit and unfortunately, if that car hits the ground before that nut's tight, we've had this problem,” he said.

The recently concluded Pennzoil 400 was the fifth race of the 2025 Cup Series season and was won by Josh Berry of Wood Brothers Racing. This was Berry's first ever Cup Series victory, and 101st for his team, WBR.

Thanks to the win, he qualified for the NASCAR playoffs alongside William Byron and Christopher Bell. Daniel Suarez of Trackhouse Racing and Ryan Preece of Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing finished the race in second and third place, respectively.