As previously reported, two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Busch had been lined up to drive a Triple Eight-run Chevrolet Camaro in the Adelaide event.
The entry was all set with a suite of commercial sponsorship and approval from Supercars before Busch pulled the pin in August.
In a recent appearance on the Stacking Pennies podcast, McLaughlin was asked which IndyCar and NASCAR stars he’d most like to see make a Supercars cameo.
Nominating Will Power and Scott Dixon as obvious options from the IndyCar ranks, he somewhat surprisingly named Busch from the NASCAR runners.
Host Corey LaJoie then raised the fact Busch “had a deal and it fell apart”, prompting McLaughlin’s surprise reveal.
“It did because they asked me to go back and do it to replace him and I was like, ‘nah, I’m not doing it’,” said McLaughlin.
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While McLaughlin won his three Supercars titles at DJR Team Penske, he’s now part of the Chevrolet family as the Bow-Tie brand powers the Penske IndyCar program.
McLaughlin previously told Speedcafe he was approached by Triple Eight about co-driving with Shane van Gisbergen in 2023 when the team was looking to replace Garth Tander.
Adelaide organisers are again looking for a US name to run as a wildcard this year, with versatile NASCAR star Kyle Larson understood to be the key target.
LaJoie noted that van Gisbergen had previously told him Larson would “have a hard time running dead last” as an Adelaide wildcard due to the competitiveness of the series.
“Larson has been talking about going back and running Adelaide,” added McLaughlin.
“I love Kyle Larson, I always have. But I agree. That race, that track, that car, I think it would be a struggle.
“If he goes there and runs top 15, that would be like a win. It’s tough.”
With Triple Eight having ruled out running an Adelaide wildcard entry this year, PremiAir Racing is thought the most likely to run Larson should the deal come off.
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