CONCORD, N.C. (AP) 鈥� Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup Series champion who won more races than anyone across NASCAR鈥檚 three national series, has died. He was 41.
The Busch Family, Richard Childress Racing and NASCAR issued a joint statement Thursday saying Busch died after being hospitalized. No cause of death was given.
Busch鈥檚 family said earlier Thursday that he was hospitalized with a 鈥渟evere illness,鈥� three days before he was to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Busch was testing in the Chevrolet racing simulator in Concord on Wednesday when he became unresponsive and was transported to a hospital in Charlotte, several people familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details have not been disclosed by Busch鈥檚 team or family.
Busch was the younger brother of Kurt Busch, a NASCAR Hall of Famer. He鈥檚 survived by wife Samantha and children Brexton and Lennix.
鈥淥ur entire NASCAR family is heartbroken by the loss of Kyle Busch,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淎 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.鈥�
The statement went on to say that 鈥渢hroughout a career that spanned more than two decades, Kyle set records in national series wins, won championships at NASCAR鈥檚 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 鈥楻owdy Nation.鈥欌��
The news comes 11 days after Busch radioed into his crew near the end of a Cup Series race at Watkins Glen asking a doctor to give him a 鈥渟hot鈥� when he finished the race. According to the TV broadcast, Busch had been struggling with a sinus cold exacerbated by the intense G-forces and elevation changes at the New York road course.
Busch finished the race in eighth place.
Busch competed at Dover last weekend and won the Trucks Series race for Spire Motorsports. He then finished 17th at the NASCAR All-Star race, his final race.
鈥淎bsolutely cannot comprehend this news,鈥� NASCAR driver and former teammate Denny Hamlin posted on social media. 鈥淲e just need to think of his family during this time. We love you KB.鈥�
Added driver Brad Keselowski on social media: 鈥淎bsolute shock. Very hard to process.鈥�
A polarizing figure known as 鈥淩owdy鈥� and 鈥淲ild Thing鈥� for his post-race fights, regular feuds with other drivers and sometimes outlandish behavior, the multi-talented Busch stormed on the Cup Series scene in 2005 by winning Rookie of the Year.
He went on to win championships in 2015 and 2019 for Joe Gibbs Racing.
鈥淗is impact on our organization and on the sport of NASCAR will never be forgotten,鈥� the team said in a statement.
From Las Vegas, Busch experienced unrivaled success across NASCAR鈥檚 three national series winning a combined 234 Cup, O鈥橰eilly Auto Parts and Trucks Series races. He had 63 Cup victories along with 102 O鈥橰eilly Auto Parts wins and 69 Trucks victories 鈥� both records.
Busch was fired early in his career by Hendrick Motorsports to make room on the team for Dale Earnhardt Jr.
鈥淜yle and I had a really challenging existence for many years,鈥� Earnhardt said in a statement. 鈥淏ut we luckily took the time to figure out our differences and that was something he instigated with a conversation in his bus around how we each managed our racing teams. I was super eager for us to get on better terms. But it was he who made the effort for that to be possible.鈥�
Busch moved on to Joe Gibbs Racing where he experienced the vast majority of career success. But Busch was let go when there was no sponsor after the 2022 season and joined Richard Childress Racing, where had struggled to win races.
His lack of success led to a recent spat with former JGR teammate Hamlin, who appeared to criticize Busch on the 鈥淎ctions Detrimental鈥� podcast. Hamlin said, 鈥淚f you鈥檙e expecting Kyle Busch to just go back to victory lane on a regular basis, you are kidding yourselves.鈥�
While Hamlin later said he meant no harm by the comments and was just making an observation, Busch took exception and said he could make Hamlin鈥檚 life 鈥渉ell鈥� on the racetrack.
While several laps down at last month鈥檚 race at Kansas, Busch raced Hamlin hard instead of allowing the race leader to pass. That decision held up Hamlin during a crucial stage of the race and Tyler Reddick won the race after Hamlin faded late.
After winning the Trucks race at Dover last week and showing an uptick in speed, Busch seemed to make a veiled jab at Hamlin, saying 鈥淚 guess I just remembered how to drive.鈥�
After earning his win at Dover, Busch was asked how many races he wanted to win in his career.
鈥淵ou take whatever you can get, man,鈥� Busch said. 鈥淵ou never know when the last one is going to be, so cherish them all 鈥� trust me.鈥�
Busch鈥檚 unexpected death is just the latest tragedy to hit NASCAR. Last December, former driver Greg Biffle, his wife and two children and three others in Statesville, North Carolina.
The announcement of Busch鈥檚 death came after teams had already left Gasoline Alley on media day at the Indianapolis 500. As word spread on Main Street in Speedway, Indiana, just a short walk from Indianapolis Motor Speedway, race fans — IndyCar and NASCAR — were saddened.
NASCAR officials confirmed to The Associated Press the Coca-Cola 600 will go on as planned Sunday.
Drivers are expected to begin making their way to Charlotte Motorsports Speedway in Concord on Friday with practice and qualifying beginning on Saturday. Earlier in the day, RCR had announced that Austin Hill would replace Busch in the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
___ AP freelance writer and former AP auto racing writer Jenna Fryer and AP Sports Writer Michael Marot in Indianapolis contributed to this report. ___
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