{"id":595,"date":"2026-05-24T22:37:50","date_gmt":"2026-05-24T22:37:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=595"},"modified":"2026-05-24T22:37:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-24T22:37:50","slug":"kyle-busch-is-an-american-badass-nascar-star-will-loom-even-larger-in-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=595","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Kyle Busch is an American badass\u2019: NASCAR star will loom even larger in death"},"content":{"rendered":"

AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n

Read our AI Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n

There is much we still don\u2019t know about the exact circumstances<\/a> of Kyle Busch\u2019s shocking death Thursday. But we do know one thing for certain:<\/p>\n

Read more Rain cancels NASCAR Cup qualifying at Charlotte. Coke 600 starting lineup now set<\/a><\/p>\n

The NASCAR star\u2019s legend isn\u2019t going anywhere.<\/p>\n

In fact, I believe Busch will loom even larger in death, much like the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. has for 25 years.<\/p>\n

As it should, Busch\u2019s passing will dominate the news all weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway in what is always their biggest month of the year. No matter who wins the Coke 600 and no matter what happens, we already know the story that everyone will remember about this week in 20 years:<\/p>\n

This was the week Kyle Busch died, at age 41.<\/p>\n

I do hope whoever does win the Coke 600 in Charlotte mimics the grand, sweeping bow Busch would do after most of his victories, emerging out of a plume of scorching burnout smoke the way the magicians in his Las Vegas hometown often did. That would be a fitting tribute, and one that could be carried on throughout the NASCAR season and beyond, in much the way Alan Kulwicki\u2019s reverse victory lap has long threaded its way through the sport.<\/p>\n

NASCAR CEO Steve O\u2019Donnell spoke to the media and the sport\u2019s fans Friday afternoon, roughly 24 hours since Busch\u2019s death was announced (the exact cause and timetable of Busch\u2019s death remains unclear, although O\u2019Donnell promised that it would be understood \u201cin due time.\u201d)<\/p>\n

I thought O\u2019Donnell encapsulated Busch\u2019s legacy as well as anyone has with a single quote.<\/p>\n

\u201cKyle Busch, to me, is an American badass,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

There was even talk in Charlotte that the races might be postponed, in recognition of this seismic turn of events. But O\u2019Donnell squashed that notion, saying: \u201cKyle Busch would probably be pretty pissed off if we didn\u2019t race. So we\u2019re going to honor his memory and make sure people know what he was all about.\u201d<\/p>\n

What was Kyle Busch about?<\/p>\n

Much like Earnhardt, Busch had his rough edges. It would be a disservice to his memory to sand all of those away and make a Hallmark card version of his life: The guy\u2019s nickname was \u201cRowdy,\u201d after all. He stirred things up. He got in scuffles, both verbal and physical.<\/p>\n

As his former racing teammate Tony Stewart wrote Friday on social media: \u201cKyle was one of a kind. Whether it was to see him win or to see someone beat him, you watched. Even the haters will miss Kyle.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s exactly right. As any movie director knows, you need a good villain for a film to succeed. Busch was happy to play that role, especially early in his career. Like a pro wrestling heel, he embraced the boos, gesturing to fans in pre-race introductions to bring them on.<\/p>\n

Read more Barbra Streisand Sends Video Message After Cancelling Cannes Appearance<\/a><\/p>\n

But Busch had softened in recent years, particularly around his wife Samantha and their children \u2014 son Brexton and daughter Lennix. The Samantha and Kyle Busch Bundle of Joy fund, inspired by their own journey with infertility and Brexton\u2019s eventual birth, has helped hundreds of families with the financial and emotional challenges of IVF. Donations have been pouring in since Kyle Busch\u2019s death, and that\u2019s a fine place to start<\/a> if you want to remember the racer.<\/p>\n

Brexton, at age 11, is an aspiring racer himself, just like his father and his uncle Kurt (also a NASCAR champion and a hall of famer). O\u2019Donnell said Friday that he knew that Kyle \u201chad a dream to race against his son in a national series event.\u201d<\/p>\n

That will never happen now, but I would bet that Brexton is going to be a NASCAR driver himself one day. Richard Childress Racing announced Friday that the organization would suspend use of Busch\u2019s No. 8 and instead run the No. 33 at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend and beyond.<\/p>\n

Busch, a two-time NASCAR Cup winner in 2015 and 2019, had helped design the stylized No. 8 for RCR and driven with it on the side of his Cup car in recent years. Now, RCR said in its statement: \u201c<\/a>The No. 8 is reserved and ready for Brexton Busch when he is ready to go NASCAR racing.\u201d<\/p>\n

So there is that \u2014 the son planning to enter the same field, just as Dale Earnhardt Jr. did. There will be Kyle Busch\u2019s NASCAR hall of fame induction in Charlotte. He will certainly be a first-ballot hall of famer \u2014 the guy won an astounding 234 races in NASCAR\u2019s top three series \u2014 and the only real question is if the hall of fame will change its rules for a year and allow Busch to go in, posthumously, with the class that was just announced.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho knows? That could be something we look at,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said.<\/p>\n

As for Sunday\u2019s Coke 600, race and NASCAR organizers will need to walk a tricky line. It can\u2019t be all about Busch; after all, the race always contains numerous Memorial Day tributes and it\u2019s also a competition that needs to keep fans engaged for four-plus hours of race time.<\/p>\n

But his death will hover over all of it, with tributes from his fellow drivers and from Charlotte Motor Speedway. \u201cSome will probably do some individual things,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said of the drivers, \u201cwhich is fantastic because they all look up to Kyle.<\/p>\n

We have a number of items that are in the works that our fans will be able to look at, to celebrate Kyle. It won\u2019t just be this weekend. He\u2019s going to be part of our sport forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Here are NC state, regional pairings for baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NASCAR star Kyle Busch died Thursday, at age 41. 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