Kyle Busch, a two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and twice a winner of the Snowball Derby, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Thursday.
He was only 41.
While his list of accolades in both the world of short track racing and NASCAR racing is lengthy, he was more importantly a husband and a father of two. His son, Brexton, had been racing in Legends and recently made the move to late models in Madera Speedway’s Jr. Late Model program.
A joint statement from NASCAR, the Busch family, and Richard Childress Racing reads:
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.
An announcement had been made Thursday morning that Busch would be unable to compete in Sunday evening’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway due to a severe illness.
Busch was the winningest driver in NASCAR national competition history with 234 wins across the top three series. However, his contributions to short track racing were also significant.
He won pavement late model racing’s most prestigious race, the Snowball Derby, in 2009 and 2017. He was also a former winner of the Oxford 250, Winchester 400, Slinger Nationals, Red Bud 400, and the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown. More recently, Busch had taken time to compete in INEX Legends racing, racking up seven Summer Shootout wins in 2025 and winning multiple national events this year.
Kyle and Brexton Busch had also made appearances regularly at Wake County Speedway in Raleigh, North Carolina.
In his early career, Busch, who hailed from Las Vegas, Nevada, competed in Legend Cars and in late model ranks at The Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He moved up to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series briefly in 2001 at the age of 16, and then returned to the national ranks in 2003.
For several years, Busch operated the Kyle Busch Motorsports late model team, fielding cars for up and coming drivers including Christopher Bell, Erik Jones, Christian Eckes, Chandler Smith, and Sammy Smith, among others.
During conversations about what he would do after retiring from full-time NASCAR racing, Busch had expressed interest in competing more frequently in the short track levels. Prior to the 2018 Brickyard 400, Busch spoke about his admiration for Andrew “Bubba” Pollard, saying the Super Late Model titan was living the dream he himself had.
Bubba Pollard is kind of living my dream right now. He’s the biggest name in Super Late Model racing right now. He’s traveling all across the country, running the biggest races and winning them. That’s something that I want to do.
While Busch’s last NASCAR Cup Series win came in 2023, he had just won a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race six days ago at Dover Motor Speedway in Delaware.
The news of Busch’s passing has not just sent shockwaves through the racing community, but throughout the nation as well. Busch was one of the last of the superstars of NASCAR racing, becoming something of a household name during the peak of NASCAR’s popularity in the mid-2000s as he took a ‘black hat’ role.
In 2015, Busch was sidelined for several months after a serious accident in a NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. He would bounce back that year, winning five races and the NASCAR Cup Series championship, which is considered one of the greatest comebacks in the history of, not just motorsports, but all of professional sports.
In his later years, Busch had become a favorite among a fanbase that grew to respect his talent, accolades, and his character as a family man.
Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha, and his two kids, Brexton and Lennix. His older brother, Kurt, was also a former champion of the NASCAR Cup Series.
Marquis comes from St. Charles, Maryland and has a widespread background in journalism, having covered politics in Washington and Maryland as well as nearly every form of auto racing, including NASCAR, IndyCar, AMA Motocross and IHRA Drag Racing. Now living near Emerald Isle, North Carolina, Marquis covers Late Model Stock Cars and Super Late Models in the Carolinas and Virginia.
