They might have been rivals on the track, but they made each other better and they definitely made NASCAR more fun to watch.
On Thursday, May 21st, NASCAR great Kyle Busch tragically passed away at the age of 41-years-old. He was one of the icons of the sport, and one of the greatest racers to ever get behind the wheel. Seeing him do so many heroic things as he often took on a villainous role in NASCAR over the years made him feel like he was larger than life… almost like a WWE wrestler.
The two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion was a prolific winner. At the time the time of his death, Busch is the all-time winningest driver in NASCAR history, with a total of 234 wins, including 63 Cup Series wins, 102 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series wins, and 69 Truck Series victories. Those accolades are impressive, but the titles that Kyle Busch ended up being most proud of were husband and father.
It was through a joint statement released by his family, NASCAR, and his Richard Childress Racing team that the world found out Kyle Busch had passed away at the age of 41:
“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.”
He very sadly leaves behind his wife, Samantha, and two young children, Brexton (11) and Lennix (4).
A joint statement on behalf of the Busch family, Richard Childress Racing and NASCAR. pic.twitter.com/7fYGjIqxoJ
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 21, 2026
The official cause of death has been revealed and according to a statement from the Busch family, Kyle passed away after a severe case of pneumonia progressed into sepsis.
If you ever even watched just one race, then you probably know that Busch’s personality transcended the sport. Even casual fans of NASCAR, and those who didn’t stay up to date with racing, knew the name Kyle Busch.
And along with Dale Earnhardt Jr., but probably even more so, one of Busch’s biggest on-track rivals was Brad Keselowski. They were bitter on-track rivals for many, many years, and had a highly publicized feud in 2012, which stemmed from multiple incidents at different tracks and years of build-up beforehand. But as they both started into their 40s, tensions seemed to thaw some and they were much warmer towards each other.
Following Kyle’s shocking death, Brad shared a heartfelt post about what they both meant to each other, admitting that they both “took our shots at each other,” in the media and on the track.”
Remember the “Kyle Busch is an a**” intro from Brad?
But a big part of that was also “appreciation.” They both had the ability to push each other to compete at the highest level, though Brad very appropriately points out that “neither one of us would’ve admitted it.” He explained the loss as having “no more roadrunners to chase,” and of course, says he’s thinking about Samantha, Kyle’s children, and the rest of the Busch family:
“I made him earn every victory and stole a few from him along the way. We took our shots at each other, in the media and on the track. But I’d like to think that somewhere deep down there was an appreciation that we pushed each other to perform at the highest level, even if neither of us would’ve admitted it.
Tonight, I feel a little like the coyote with no more roadrunner to chase. His loss is all of our loss, but none more so than his family’s. Thinking of Samantha, and Brexton and Lennix who lost their father today.”
And Keselowski also spoke with PEOPLE today and shared his last memories of Busch, saying that he once had “visions” of them burying the hatchet in their old age and entering the Hall of Fame together. He says they had been on a plane together just days before Kyle died, flying to Dover together before the Cup Series race on May 17th. Brad says Kyle is normally “a fairly gregarious person, very outgoing” person, and this time, he sat down and went to sleep right away.
Brad says he could tell Kyle “wasn’t feeling well”:
“I was flying to Dover last week with Kyle, it was probably more by chance than anything else. Kyle is normally a fairly gregarious person, very outgoing and he wasn’t. He sat down one row behind me and next to me and fell asleep right away and I could tell he wasn’t feeling well.”
He admits he “didn’t think that much of it,” but it was the last time he saw him besides out on the track for the Cup Series race:
“Didn’t really think that much of it, to be honest. And that was pretty much the last time I saw him. We were in a race and you get in a race and you don’t really see each other. So I saw him on the racetrack.”
He doubled down on the fact that he’s going to miss the “rivalry” they had and that always assumed they would bury the hatchet when they both retired and went into the Hall of Fame together. He lamented the fact that now, he’ll never get the chance to have a laugh with Kyle about their glory days, pushing each other to the limit.
Brad also explained that there was just something about racing against Kyle that felt different, even if there were 30-something other drivers on the track:
“For whatever reason, Kyle and I had built into a relationship where although there’s 30-some other drivers on the racetrack, I valued meeting him more than anyone else. Fifth place day and race is generally a good day. It’s not a great day, but it’s a good day.
With a fifth place day where Kyle Busch finished fourth didn’t feel like a good day. And conversely, a 10th place day where I beat Kyle Busch felt like a better day. That’s what a rivalry is at its core and that’s how I felt about it.”
He says he’s going to deeply miss that weekly rivalry with Kyle, and while there were many times that the tension was high between them, and they went out of their way to stay away from one another, it didn’t change the ultimate, very deep respect the two very fierce competitors held for each other.
This past weekend during the Coca-Cola 600 pre-race portion of the evening, Samantha, Brexton and Lennix Busch were in attendance to honor Kyle, along with his parents, brother and fellow driver Kurt Busch, Samantha’s parents, as well as the entire NASCAR family. It was incredible to watch young Brexton stand next to his mom and comfort her the entire time, of course they’ve all experienced an immense tragedy and it’s very fresh, obviously, but he was so brave and sweet during the face of unimaginable pain.
This was the moment that truly encapsulated how much Kyle Busch meant to NASCAR.
The strength of Samantha and Brexton. They will always have a massive extended family to lift them up.
Well done, @NASCAR pic.twitter.com/UMoCDYlmSY
— Trey Wallace (@TreyWallace) May 24, 2026
It took incredible strength for Samantha and the kids to be there, I was shocked by it, honestly, but they surely made Kyle proud and our prayers are with his entire family.
