{"id":2394,"date":"2026-05-21T22:39:44","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T22:39:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/05\/21\/kyle-busch-two-time-nascar-champion-dies-aged-41\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T22:39:44","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T22:39:44","slug":"kyle-busch-two-time-nascar-champion-dies-aged-41","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=2394","title":{"rendered":"Kyle Busch, two-time Nascar champion, dies aged 41"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"border-color:var(--article-border);background-color:var(--article-inner-background)\" class=\"dcr-wqti5a\">\n<div class=\"dcr-2zxs1v\">\n<div style=\"--grid-area:media\" data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"e1f8ecf6-7d92-4856-a47b-77e52ca6acfe\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"man in a yellow jumpsuit with M&amp;M's branding smiles while holds a large trophy on a racetrack at night\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/6a7120838158f8791e312fce00471991b17e0a4d\/0_0_5472_3648\/master\/5472.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"310\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Kyle Busch poses with the trophy after winning the Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Championship at Homestead Speedway on 17 November 2019 in Homestead, Florida.<\/span> Photograph: Chris Graythen\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"e1f8ecf6-7d92-4856-a47b-77e52ca6acfe\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Kyle Busch poses with the trophy after winning the Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Championship at Homestead Speedway on 17 November 2019 in Homestead, Florida.<\/span> Photograph: Chris Graythen\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:border\" data-gu-name=\"border\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:headline\" data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aqe7zu\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">Kyle Busch, two-time Nascar champion, dies aged 41<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:standfirst\" data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>Nascar says it is \u2018heartbroken\u2019 to share news of Busch\u2019s death after he was hospitalized with a severe illness<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:body\" data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-kn9unn\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-1c9t5u6\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Two-time <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/nascar\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Nascar<\/a> Cup Series champion Kyle Busch has died at 41 after being hospitalized with a severe illness, Nascar said in a Thursday statement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cWe are saddened and heartbroken to share the news of the passing of Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup champion and one of our sport\u2019s greatest and fiercest drivers. He was 41 years old,\u201d the racing organization <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/NASCAR\/status\/2057577365543301405\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">wrote<\/a> on social media. \u201cWe extend our deepest condolences to the Busch family, Richard Childress Racing and the entire motorsports community.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">No cause of death was given.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Busch\u2019s family had announced his hospitalization earlier on Thursday, saying he wouldn\u2019t compete as planned at this weekend\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/nascar\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Nascar<\/a> race in Charlotte, North Carolina.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">During a Nascar Cup Series race on 10 May at Watkins Glen, Busch radioed in to his crew requesting medical aid from Dr Bill Heisel and a \u201cshot\u201d after the race. According to the TV broadcast, Busch had been struggling with a sinus cold that was exacerbated by the intense G-forces and elevation changes at the upstate New York road course.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Busch continued to race and finished eighth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Busch ranked 24th in the Cup Series standings, with two top-10 finishes in 12 races this season. The Las Vegas native won championships in 2015 and 2019. Busch was in his fourth season at Richard Childress Racing after winning titles with Joe Gibbs Racing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Busch won 234 races across Nascar\u2019s three national series, more than any driver in history. His last win came in 2023.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">A polarizing figure known as \u201cRowdy\u201d and \u201cWild Thing\u201d 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.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Over the course of his career, he won 63 Cup Series races.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha, and children Brexton and Lennix.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\"><em>Associated Press contributed reporting<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1rrvs2w\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US news<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/sport\/us-sport\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US sports<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/sport\/nascar\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Nascar<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/sport\/motorsports\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Motor sport<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Kyle%20Busch,%20two-time%20Nascar%20champion,%20dies%20aged%2041&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/21\/kyle-busch-dead?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fmay%2F21%2Fkyle-busch-dead&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/may\/21\/kyle-busch-dead\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:right-column\" data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1h2hraq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tn16h9\">\n<section class=\"dcr-1hko8ef\"><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kyle Busch poses with the trophy after winning the Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Championship at Homestead Speedway<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":2396,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2394"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2394\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}