Kyle Busch, a two-time champion of the NASCAR Cup Series and the association’s winningest driver in history, has died at age 41.
“We are saddened and heartbroken to share the news of the passing of Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup champion and one of our sport’s greatest and fiercest drivers,” NASCAR said in a statement Thursday afternoon. “We extend our deepest condolences to the Busch family, Richard Childress Racing and the entire motorsports community.”
No cause of death has been disclosed.
Earlier on Thursday, Busch’s family posted a statement on the driver’s X account saying that Busch had been hospitalized with a “severe illness” and would not be participating in this weekend’s NASCAR events at Charlotte Motor Speedway — including the Coca-Cola 600, a race Busch won in 2018.
During a Cup Series race on May 10 at Watkins Glen International in Dix, N.Y., Busch told his crew on the radio that he would need medical aid and a shot after the race. The TV broadcast mentioned that Busch had been dealing with a sinus cold all week. He ended up finishing in eighth place, his best Cup Series finish of the season.
Last week at Dover Motor Speedway in Delaware, Busch finished 17th in the Cup Series exhibition All-Star race but won his second Truck Series race of the year.
“Absolutely cannot comprehend this news,” Denny Hamlin, NASCAR driver and former Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, posted on social media. “We just need to think of his family during this time. We love you KB.”
Busch raced in NASCAR’s top division for 22 full-time seasons, winning the Cup Series championship in 2015 and 2019 and the series regular-season championship in 2018 and 2019. He won 63 Cup Series races, 69 in the Truck Series and 102 in the XFinity Series, making him the winningest driver in NASCAR’s top three series combined.
The last time Busch missed a Cup Series race was in 2015, when he was recovering from a compound leg fracture and broken foot and was unable to take part in the first 11 events that season.
“A future Hall of Famer, Kyle was a rare talent, one who comes along once in a generation,” NASCAR said in a separate statement released Thursday, also on behalf of the Busch family and Richard Childress Racing.
“He was fierce, he was passionate, he was immensely skilled and he cared deeply about the sport and fans. Throughout a career that spanned more than two decades, Kyle set records in national series wins, won championships at NASCAR’s highest level and fostered the next generation of drivers as an owner in the Truck Series.
“His sharp wit and competitive spirit sparked a deep emotional connection with race fans of every age, creating the proud and loyal ‘Rowdy Nation.’ … NASCAR lost a giant of the sport today, far too soon.”
Born May 2, 1985, in Las Vegas, Busch was surrounded by racing. His father, Tom, was a mechanic and local racer who had relocated from Illinois with his wife, Gaye. Busch’s brother, Kurt, was seven years older and an eventual Cup Series champion (2004) and NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee.
Working his way up from go-karts in cul-de-sacs and parking lots to full-bodied Late Model competition, Busch earned the respect of his older brother early on.
“You think I’m a pretty good race car driver?” Kurt Busch said in 2001, four years before his younger sibling’s rookie season. “Wait until you see my brother. He’s the best driver in the family.”
Busch made his O’Reilly Series debut for Hendrick Motorsports on May 24, 2003, with a second-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Entering the series as a full-time driver the next year, Busch won five races and finished second overall to Martin Truex Jr.
Around that time, Busch started what would become his signature celebration, a showman’s bow after each win.
Known as “Rowdy” and “Wild Thing” for his post-race fights and feuds with other drivers, Busch first reached the Cup Series in 2004 before his full-fledge rookie campaign the following season. The 2005 rookie of the year, Busch became the series’ youngest winner in his 31st start, one of four wins during his three full seasons at Hendrick.
Busch joined the Gibbs team in 2008 and remained there until switching to Childress and taking over the No. 8 Chevrolet in 2023.
After his win at Dover this month, Busch was asked how many races he wanted to win before he stopped racing.
“You take whatever you can get, man,” Busch said. “You never know when the last one is going to be, so cherish them all — trust me.”
Busch is survived by his wife Samantha, son Brexton, 10, and daughter Lennix, 4.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
