NASCAR champ who loved Fort Worth Stockyards dies suddenly at 41
Kyle Busch, a two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion who raced at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this month, died Thursday at age 41 after a severe illness.
Busch was the second-winningest NASCAR Cup driver at TMS with four victories, most recently in 2020.
Busch spoke to the Star-Telegram about a month ago ahead of the Würth 400, the May 3 race at TMS. In what now stands as one of his final interviews, the driver talked about his affection for Fort Worth, his go-to spots in the Stockyards and the infield party scene he said was unmatched anywhere else on the circuit.
Struggling this season
Busch didn’t hide that this season had been a struggle. Busch was 29th in Cup Series standings and was adjusting to a new crew chief when he spoke to the Star-Telegram. He finished 20th in the Würth 400 and is 24th in the Cup Series standings.
“Unfortunately, this year just hasn’t quite gone to par. But we’re working with a new crew chief this year, and we’re still trying to find our way and exactly what we need in the race cars in order to get that speed that we’re looking for,” Busch said. “So it’s been a little bit of a struggle. ... Texas has been a great place for me. Just always love going to Texas, you know, it’s a little bit of East Coast, but also a little bit of West Coast, you know, it’s right there in the middle. So a great racetrack and a lot of fun.”
The Stockyards were his stop
Busch’s answer about what he liked to do in Fort Worth will sound familiar.
“For me it’s the Stockyards, love going [there] and checking everything out down there and walking around a little bit, checking out some of the shops and stuff and restaurants are always great in that area as well, too. Of course, you love getting yourself a nice steak,” Busch said.
‘The party scene in the infield of Texas is like none other’
Busch also talked about why TMS race weekends felt different from other stops on the schedule, pointing directly at the camping and infield culture that Fort Worth fans have built over the years.
“They’re always passionate. They always love to come out there have a good time and the party scene in the infield of Texas is like none other,” Busch said. “So, you know, it always has great camping out there, and, you know, great nightlife. You know, you can always hear everybody playing their music out there and having a good time and enjoying the camaraderie of the area and what that brings.”
A challenging track he respected
Busch talked technically about the reconfigured TMS surface, which made turns one and two flatter than turns three and four while adding more banking — a layout that has frustrated plenty of drivers.
“You have to really drive the race cars in a different fashion on both ends of the racetrack. So makes it challenging. But you know, I feel like the bigger the challenge, the better it is for the teams and the engineers to come out there and have a better race car, and that’s just going to make your performance even better,” Busch said.
This story was originally published May 21, 2026 at 5:50 PM.