NASCAR, the Busch Family and Richard Childress Racing jointly announced the passing of Kyle Busch this evening.
Busch was 41 years old. No cause of death was revealed. The family had announced earlier in the day that Busch had been hospitalized and would not be competing this weekend.
The joint statement released this evening read:
“On behalf of the Busch family, everyone at Richard Childress Racing and all of NASCAR, we are devastated to announce the sudden and tragic passing of Kyle Busch.
“Our entire NASCAR family is heartbroken by the loss of Kyle Busch. A future Hall of Famer, Kyle was a rare talent, one who comes along once in a generation. 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.’ Our thoughts are with Samantha, Brexton and Lennix, Kyle and Samantha’s parents, Kurt and all of Kyle’s family, Richard and Judy Childress, everyone at Richard Childress Racing, his teammates, friends and fans. NASCAR lost a giant of the sport today, far too soon.
“During this incredibly difficult time, we ask everyone to respect the family’s privacy and continue to keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Further updates will be shared as appropriate.”
Busch was in his 22nd season of full-time competition with the NASCAR Cup Series. He has competed for Richard Childress Racing since 2023. He began his Cup Series career with Hendrick Motorsports, running full-time for the team from 2005-2007. He moved on to Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008 and competed for the team until 2022, winning two Cup Series championships in 2015 and 2019.
He had 63 Cup Series victories over 762 starts since. His last Cup Series win came on June 4, 2023 at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois.
Busch was the 2009 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion. He is the division’s all-time winningest driver with 102 victories over 367 starts.
In the Craftsman Truck Series Busch had a series record 69 victories over 184 events, with the most recent coming on last Friday (May 15) at Dover Motor Speedway.
Busch’s older brother Kurt, who was also a NASCAR Cup Series champion, was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame this year.
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So sad! Too young! Race In Peace Kyle. 😢🙏🏼🏁
I DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY, I’,M A CHRISTIAN MAN, WHY GOD WHY? I’M CRYING FOR KYLE. I DON’T UNDERSTAND!!!!!!
So i think everyone should have an M&M this weekend in memory of Kyle”Rowdy”Busch and sincere condolences to the whole Busch family RIP buddy GODSPEED🙏🙏🏁🏁🏁
Very sad news.prayers for his family. Kyle was so talented, and like him or not he was respected for his accomplishments He passed way too young, and will surely be missed. Again thoughts and prayers to hi family, friends and fans
I agree with all the previous comments.Prayers to his family. Like him or not this is horrible to hear. As Just Saying said, have an M&M this weekend in his memory. God Speed Kyle, you’re going to be missed.
He was a super talented wheelman, gone way too soon.. Life is like a vapor and soon gone, Love your Family give them hugs and Loves every chance you get, We don’t know what tomorrow will bring.. If there’s something you wanna do or see, get out there and see & do those things.. Sad to see such a young man in prime of life leave us… Rest in Peace Kyle… Sad day for all of Nascar & Fans alike…
I fully agree with all of the above! God must have needed a really good wheelman.
👍
As tragic as this is , that he fell ill during driver in the loop testing using a simulator at the GM Motorsports Charlotte Technical Center, makes me concerned that this could have been precipitated by either a human or mechanical failure of the test rig. Those multi axis six degree of freedom setups are capable of generating some pretty significant dynamic loads.