- RCR suspends No. 8 Chevrolet car after the death of Kyle Busch.
- Busch had last driven the No. 8 car for the team since 2023.
- RCR has reserved it for his son.
Kyle Busch’s sudden death has left the NASCAR garage engulfed in grief and disbelief, with emotions spilling across pit road and through every corner of the sport.
Even Kyle Larson appeared shaken at Charlotte Motor Speedway, as the garage attempted to process the loss of one of the sport’s defining figures. Amid the heartbreak and uncertainty, Richard Childress Racing has now made a decision regarding the No. 8 Chevrolet last driven by Busch in the NASCAR Cup Series.
In an announcement released Friday, RCR confirmed that the No. 8 Chevrolet will be suspended for an indefinite period following Busch’s death on Thursday after complications from a severe illness.
RCR will reserve the No. 8 for the son of Kyle Busch, Brexton Busch
Richard Childress Racing announced that the organization will field the No. 33 Chevrolet in place of the No. 8 for its second Cup Series entry moving forward. At the same time, the team revealed that the No. 8 designation will remain untouched until Busch’s son, Brexton Busch, reaches NASCAR competition.
Busch, who joined the organization at the beginning of the 2023 season, drove the No. 8 before his death at age 41.
RCR said in a statement, “Kyle Busch was instrumental in the design of RCR’s stylized No. 8 and it has become synonymous with Kyle and an important symbol for his fans and the NASCAR industry. No one can carry it forward to the level that he did. The No. 8 is reserved and ready for Brexton Busch when he is ready to go NASCAR racing.”
Austin Hill, a regular in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, will drive the No. 33 Chevrolet during Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 in Busch’s place.
RCR first revived the No. 8 in 2019 when the organization swapped out its longtime No. 31 entry for driver Daniel Hemric. From 2020 through 2022, Tyler Reddick drove the number before Busch took over and added his own stamp to the design by remodifying the figure to resemble the letter “B.”
The No. 33 has remained part of RCR’s stable since 2003, serving both full-time and part-time roles through the years. Since 2022, the number has operated as the team’s third Cup entry, with Hill and fellow O’Reilly Auto Parts Series driver Jesse Love sharing duties this season.
The move also mirrors the decision RCR made following the death of Dale Earnhardt Sr. in 2001, when the organization retired the No. 3 between the Daytona 500 and the next race at Rockingham, replacing it with the No. 29.
Busch made 120 starts in the No. 8 Chevrolet and collected three victories, all during the 2023 season. Those wins came at Auto Club Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, and World Wide Technology Raceway.
However, outside that season, Busch failed to return to the playoffs during his remaining years with RCR. He closed 2023 in 14th place in the standings, slipped to 20th in 2024, and later dropped to 21st the following season.
How has Brexton Busch’s racing career been so far, and what lies ahead?
Busch’s son, Brexton, has already made his name within youth racing circles after winning the Tulsa Shootout Jr. Sprint Championship last year to secure his first Golden Driller trophy.
Brexton began racing in 2020 at age five in the Beginner Box Stock division at Millbridge Speedway, a one-sixth-mile dirt track in Salisbury, North Carolina. According to his website, he scored his first win one month later at Mountain Creek Speedway and has continued adding to his résumé since then.
During the 2024 season, Brexton won 48 races and recorded 107 top-five finishes across multiple forms of race cars. Over the last several seasons, Brexton has become a familiar face throughout the NASCAR garage and dirt racing scene, often accompanying his father to races across the country.
Kyle Busch frequently shared photos and videos celebrating his son’s accomplishments behind the wheel, documenting the early stages of a career many fans believed could eventually become another branch of the Busch racing lineage.
At only 11 years old, Brexton has already competed in numerous dirt racing events while building a following among NASCAR fans who embraced the father-son bond Busch openly displayed throughout his career.
One of Busch’s final moments with Brexton that resonated across social media came earlier this season following Busch’s victory in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In Victory Lane, Brexton congratulated his father.
Fans regularly spotted Brexton beside Busch in the garage, on pit road, at dirt tracks, and throughout post-race celebrations. Over time, many supporters stopped viewing him solely as Kyle Busch’s son and began to see him as someone capable of carrying the family name further into NASCAR’s future.
In fact, in an interview clip posted last month by Racing News Feed on Instagram, Busch discussed plans to remain in NASCAR long enough to race alongside his son one day. Busch said, “I would retire from cup racing when Brexton is 15 years old, and I would go run a year of truck. I would go run a full truck series season to see if I can win a truck series championship, because I would be the first one to have ever won in all three series of NASCAR.”
Busch had also stated, “So I would do that, and then when Brexton turns 16, him and I can split that truck where he can run the shorter track races and I can the bigger track races.” Busch pictured stepping aside from longer-track events once Brexton turned 18 and could legally compete there himself, paving the way toward Busch’s retirement from the sport. That dream, however, now remains unfinished. Brexton is only 11 years old.
While Kyle Busch never had the chance to race beside his son in NASCAR, fans across the sport are now rallying behind Brexton in hopes that he may someday carry forward the legacy his father built. Austin Dillon has also pledged support for the Busch family in whatever form they may need moving ahead.
