NASCAR Hall of Famer Kurt Busch has spoken out for the first time since his brother, beloved racing icon Kyle Busch, passed away in May.
On Aug. 21, Kurt spoke with Craig Melvin, detailing how his brother’s condition “escalated so fast” while detailing how he’s healing from this heartbreaking loss.
“There is no book,” Kurt explained. “There is no outline on what we’re supposed to do right now.”
Kyle died at the age of 41 on May 21 from severe pneumonia that progressed into sepsis. His brother was with him at the time, and recalled what he said to him before his passing.
“I said, ‘I got you man. Come on. I got you. I got you, come on. Be strong,’” he said. “Just wasn’t fair.”
However, he says Kyle’s legacy continues to live on.
“It’s already out there,” Kurt Busch said. “He’s the winningest driver in NASCAR history across all the series. The tenacity that he had, it it was every day, 24/7. To help people in the latter part of his career, to be a great father like he was. It’ll all shine as time puts different things in spotlights.”
Kurt Busch Reveals What Happened Following Kyle Busch’s Medical Emergency In The Racing Simulator
On May 10, Kyle finished eighth in the NASCAR Cup Series race in Watkins Glen, and said he was suffering from a cold at the time. Then, on May 15, he won the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in Dover, Delaware. But just a few days later, he was hospitalized after suffering a medical emergency in a racing simulator.
“The crew chief said that he went into the restroom and that he could hear him coughing very, very abruptly, and that he asked Kyle, like, ‘You all right?’” Kurt recalled. “And Kyle says, ‘No.’
“And he’s sitting there just on the floor, back up against the wall, and the crew chief said that he saw blood in the sink. And he goes, ‘You don’t look so good.’ And Kyle said, ‘No.’”
They called for an ambulance, and shortly after his family announced he would miss the next race at Charlotte Motor Speedway due to a “severe illness.” Just a few hours later, he passed away.
“I was there at the hospital, all day,” his brother said. “Hoping. Praying. Hoping for a turnaround.
“It’s just everything had plateaued so fast,” he continued. “It just escalated so fast. And so I don’t explain it to people, I don’t. What I saw, what I went through, nobody needs to go through that. Samantha’s right there all the way through. My mom. My dad. Team owners were starting to show up, and NASCAR (officials).”
Kurt Busch Talks About Mentoring His Nephew, Kyle Busch’s Son
Kyle’s son Brexton is an aspiring racer, wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps. And Kurt has taken it upon himself to help mentor him.
“He’s a prodigy, and he was on the gas even before all of this,” Kurt said. “He can be a big star in the world of motor sports. He’s 11, but he’s already racing like an 18-year-old. So it’s time to be around a bit more.”
