NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch was seen smiling and posing for photos with fans just hours before his death at age 41 on Thursday, May 21.
One fan, who goes by Pamela D. Hauck on Facebook, posted a photo with Busch and two friends to a group called NASCAR Fontana Memories. In the pic, the driver is dressed in all black and smiling wide, though Hauck noted in the comments that Busch did not seem himself.
She wrote that the photo was taken on Wednesday, May 20. Busch was hospitalized only hours later.
“How is he gone hours after,” she wrote alongside the photo. “I’m absolutely devastated. Beyond Belief. I’m here for the week in Charlotte because of him, to see him, and watch him win one more time. Reconciling it will never happen again is impossible. RIP Kyle. Your devoted Rowdy Warrior.”
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The post has attracted more than 1,000 reactions and 160 comments as of Friday, May 22. In the comments section, Hauck added that Busch was “definitely was off – feeling crummy – not himself.”
“He definitely wasn’t feeling 100%,” she wrote. “We could tell, but I’m sure as always he pushed himself.”
Busch died on Thursday afternoon, hours after his family revealed he had been hospitalized with a “severe illness” and would not race as scheduled at the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 24, in Charlotte, North Carolina.
NASCAR announced his death via X.
“We are saddened and heartbroken to share the news of the passing of Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup champion and one of our sport’s greatest and fiercest drivers,” the post read. “He was 41 years old. We extend our deepest condolences to the Busch family, Richard Childress Racing and the entire motorsports community.”
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It was later revealed that Busch became “unresponsive” while testing in the Chevrolet racing simulator at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.
NASCAR added an additional statement that was also on behalf of the Busch family and Busch’s team, Richard Childress Racing.
“Our entire NASCAR family is heartbroken by the loss of Kyle Busch,” the statement began. “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.”
Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha Busch, and the couple’s son, Brexton, 11, and daughter, Lennix, 4.
