Kyle Busch will expand his team's NASCAR operation to the Nationwide Series in 2012, fielding a fully funded Toyota Camry next year.
Busch announced on Friday at Talladega Superspeedway that Kyle Busch Motorsports will continue to run the No. 18 entry in the Truck Series in 2012, while adding a full-time entry in the second-tier series. The team first ran in Nationwide last May at Charlotte with support from NEMCO Motorsports, entering a car for Kimi Raikkonen following his debut in the Truck Series a week earlier with KBM.
"Obviously, it takes funding to do this deal and we wouldn't be able to do it without the partner that we've acquired," said Busch. "With working with them and going through all the due diligence and getting everything put down on paper, certainly it's been an exciting time.
"We've been going through this process for about four months. We're ready and excited that the opportunity has finally come that we can move up to the Nationwide Series. We wanted to do that at Kyle Busch Motorsports for a couple of years."
Busch, the 2009 Nationwide Series champion, is expected to drive for his own squad next year both in Trucks and Nationwide, although his team's lineup for the whole season will be announced at a later date.