Kyle Busch’s final NASCAR season nearly ended before it started, and not because of anything that happened on a racetrack.
The two-time Cup Series champion, who died Thursday, May 21 at 41 after being hospitalized with a severe illness, spent his last months grinding through a difficult season, chasing a turnaround that was just starting to come.
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It started with a smoke detector
The night before the originally scheduled Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, Busch was tracking down a chirping fire detector in his North Carolina home. He and his wife Samantha traced it to a unit outside their son Brexton’s room.
“I get up on the stool and as I’m reaching up with my second arm, the stool explodes,” Busch said on the March 10 episode of his wife’s podcast Certified Oversharer.
He landed on his feet and thought he was fine, but his son saw bleeding, They headed to the ER where a it took 24 stitches to reattach a “flap” of skin. The doctors told him he “barely” missed the muscle in the left leg.
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Here’s a timeline of Kyle Busch’s NASCAR 2026 season leading up to his tragic death.
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch’s career left a lasting mark on NASCAR, with achievements and moments that defined his time in the sport.
Above, Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates with daughter, Lennix Busch son, Brexton Busch and wife, Samantha Busch in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 Racing 208 at Echo Park Speedway on Feb. 21, 2026, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
1 / 18
Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch’s career left a lasting mark on NASCAR, with achievements and moments that defined his time in the sport.
Above, Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates with daughter, Lennix Busch son, Brexton Busch and wife, Samantha Busch in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 Racing 208 at Echo Park Speedway on Feb. 21, 2026, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 8 zone/Thorntons Chevrolet, exits his car and reacts after an on-track incident during the NASCAR Cup Series Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on June 30, 2024, in Lebanon, Tennessee.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Feb. 22, 2025, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Jonathan Bachman, Getty Images)
4 / 18
Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 Racing 208 at Echo Park Speedway on Feb. 21, 2026, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Jonathan Bachman, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR XFINITY Series Kansas Lottery 300 at Kansas Speedway on Oct. 17, 2015, in Kansas City, Kansas.
(Matt Sullivan, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Crispy Toyota, celebrates winning the series championship and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 22, 2015, in Homestead, Florida.
(Mike Ehrmann, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Crispy Toyota, celebrates winning the series championship and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 22, 2015, in Homestead, Florida.
(Mike Ehrmann, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship and the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead Speedway on Nov. 17, 2019, in Homestead, Florida.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet, and crew celebrate in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Feb. 22, 2025, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Chris Graythen, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Realtree Chevrolet, celebrates with his wife, Samantha Busch, and daughter, Lennix Busch victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 250 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 12, 2024, in Fort Worth, Texas.
(Chris Graythen, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 8 Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet, waves to fans as he walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on Aug. 24, 2024, in Daytona Beach, Florida.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
12 / 18
Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, celebrates with his daughter, Lennix Busch in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 Racing 208 at Echo Park Speedway on Feb. 21, 2026, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
13 / 18
Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’s Crispy Toyota, celebrates with his son Brexton and wife Samantha in Victory Lane after winning the series championship and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 22, 2015, in Homestead, Florida.
(Chris Graythen, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Feb. 22, 2025, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Chris Graythen, Getty Images)
15 / 18
Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Realtree Chevrolet, celebrates with his wife, Samantha Busch, and daughter, Lennix Busch victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 250 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 12, 2024, in Fort Worth, Texas.
(Sean Gardner, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 8 3CHI Chevrolet, celebrates after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 at WWT Raceway on June 4, 2023, in Madison, Illinois.
(Jeff Curry, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet, celebrates with a burnout after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Feb. 22, 2025, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Chris Graythen, Getty Images)
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Remembering Kyle Busch’s life and NASCAR career in photos
Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Feb. 22, 2025, in Hampton, Georgia.
(Jonathan Bachman, Getty Images)
Feb.1- 4, 2026 – Cook Out Clash, Bowman Gray
A winter storm had hit North Carolina, which had pushed the race back from Feb. 1 to Feb. 4. That not only gave Busch a chance to get in and out of a quiet ER but allowed him enough time to get back in the car. He raced after the accident and finished 13th.
Feb. 15, 2026 – Daytona 500 pole
After 20 tries, Busch finally won the pole for the Daytona 500 in his 21st and final attempt there. He finished 15th in the Great American Race. Tyler Reddick won it.
Daytona through May 10 – Two top 10s
This was a long, hard stretch, which included finishing 35th in Kansas City. Richard Childress Racing changed crew chiefs during this stretch and Busch had two top-10 finishes. On April 26, he finished 10th at Talladega and on May 10 he finished eighth at Watkins Glen.
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May 10 Watkins Glen – Call for a doctor
Near the end of the Watkins Glen race, Busch radioed into his crew asking for Dr. Bill Heisel to meet him at his bus after the race. According to the TV broadcast, he been struggling with a “sinus cold” that was exacerbated by the intense G-forces and elevation changes at the New York course.
May 15 – Won Truck Series ECOSAVE 200
Racing in the No.7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, he led for 147 of 200 laps. It was his 69th Truck Series career win and his final trip to victory lane.
May 17, 2026 – Last race, Dover All-Star
His last race was the NASCAR All-Star race at Dover Motor Speedway. He finished 17th after starting 23rd.
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May 20-21, 2026 – Hospitalization and death
Busch was testing in the Chevrolet racing simulator in Concord May 20 when he became unresponsive and was transported to a hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina, according to several people familiar with the situation told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The Busch family released a statement the next morning saying he had experienced a “severe illness resulting in hospitalization” and would not compete in the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Later that evening, the family, RCR and NASCAR announced Busch’s death.
No cause of death was disclosed.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series driver Kyle Busch stands with his wife Samantha Busch and children Brexton and Lennix prior to the CRC Brakleen 150 at Pocono Raceway in 2023.
He is survived by his wife and their children, Brexton and Lennix. Busch won 63 Cup Series races and 234 total across NASCAR’s three national series. His last Cup Series win came June 4, 2023 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kyle Busch’s 2026 season timeline, from stool accident to his death
