zone™ Premium Nicotine Pouches and Richard Childress Racing Continue Successful Partnership in 2026 with zone Activating as Anchor Primary Sponsor for Kyle Busch and the No. 8 Team in the NASCAR Cup Series
Year Three to Highlight The Moments Before Key Races and Launch New Flavors
WELCOME, N.C. (January 23, 2026) – zone™ premium nicotine pouches will continue its relationship with Richard Childress Racing as the anchor partner for Kyle Busch and the No. 8 zone Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2026. zone, a tobacco-free and smoke free experience for adult nicotine consumers, will work with RCR to introduce new flavor profiles and build upon successful marketing initiatives featuring Busch, a two-time NASCAR champion and one of the sport’s most prolific drivers.
Since first partnering in 2024, RCR and zone have collaborated on robust at-track hosting, activations, strategic content, and marketing and communications campaigns that successfully help bring the brand and its most popular flavors—including Wintergreen, Dragonfruit, Citrus, Spearmint, and Mint—closer to adult nicotine consumers. In 2026, the companies will build on those successful initiatives – focusing on pre-race moments and lifestyle, while also introducing new flavor profiles. Among other activities, fans can expect new, limited and exciting livery beginning early season.
“The countdown to the 2026 season starts now and zone is thrilled to partner with Kyle Busch for a third-consecutive year in the No. 8 zone Chevrolet at some of motorsports’ most intense races,” said Rishi Dhingra, executive vice president of marketing for ITG Brands, the parent company of zone. “Kyle and the entire team at RCR provide a powerful platform to create meaningful, exclusive touch points—especially in the moments leading up to NASCAR’s biggest events.”
“zone and RCR have worked hand-in-hand to build and launch unique, customizable marketing campaigns geared towards adult nicotine consumers and everyone at RCR is thrilled to watch our relationship continue to evolve as we head into the third year of our partnership,” said Mike Verlander, president of Richard Childress Racing.
zone will continue to serve as the anchor primary on Busch’s No. 8 Chevrolet in 2026, beginning with the NASCAR Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium on Sunday, February 1, 2026. The race airs live on FOX at 8 p.m. ET. Busch will also drive the No. 8 zone Chevrolet for all Speedweeks activities, including the Duels at Daytona on Thursday, February 12 (7 p.m. ET live on FOX Sports 1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR radio) and the Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 15 (2:30 p.m. ET live on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) before racing the No. 8 zone Chevrolet in multiple races throughout the 2026 season.
zone is available to 21+ age-verified adult nicotine consumers in select retailers across 12 U.S. markets.
For more information, please visit rcrracing.com and zonepouches.com.
About Richard Childress Racing
Richard Childress Racing (www.rcrracing.com) is a renowned, performance-driven racing, marketing and manufacturing organization. Incorporated in 1969, RCR has celebrated over 50 years of racing and earned more than 200 victories and 17 championships, including six in the NASCAR Cup Series with the legendary Dale Earnhardt. RCR was the first organization to win championships in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and NASCAR Truck Series and is a three-time winner of the Daytona 500 (1998, 2007, 2018). Its 2026 NASCAR Cup Series lineup includes two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Busch (No. 8 Chevrolet) and 2017 Coca-Cola 600 winner and 2018 Daytona 500 champion Austin Dillon (No. 3 Chevrolet). RCR fields a full-time NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series program with 2025 champion Jesse Love (No. 2 Chevrolet) and 2023 regular season champion Austin Hill (No. 21 Chevrolet).
About zone
zone™, the latest innovation from ITG Brands, is the next generation of nicotine pouches that delivers a superior tobacco-free experience and outperforms competitive products where it matters most. Available in 6mg and 9mg strengths and 10 variants, zone pouches are made with top shelf ingredients and high-quality materials to provide immediate nicotine intensity, longer-lasting flavor, and extra soft comfort, longer-lasting flavor, and immediate nicotine intensity. zone’s pouches are carefully crafted and designed to meet the needs of adult nicotine consumers, providing the best experience from the first pouch to the last. For more information, visit zonepouches.com.
