Kyle Busch will no longer appear in NASCAR’s Cup Series point standings for the 2026 season.
Busch — who died last Thursday due to what his family called complications from severe pneumonia that progressed into sepsis — was 24th in points following his final official Cup Series race at Watkins Glen on May 10. Busch placed 17th in the Richard Childress Racing No. 8 Chevrolet a week later at Dover, but All-Star races don’t count toward season points totals.
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Following Busch’s shocking death, his car was renumbered to No. 33 and Austin Hill raced in his place at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Coca-Cola 600, placing 27th. Hill will also fill the seat of the No. 33 this Sunday at Nashville.
According to Bob Pockrass of Fox Sports, NASCAR made the decision to remove Busch from the point standings after talking with RCR about how to be “empathetic of the impact to those who would see his name in the standings.”
Busch is NASCAR’s all-time winningest driver across its top three national touring series with 234 combined victories. He has 63 wins in the top-level Cup Series, which ranks ninth all-time. He also has 102 wins in the second-tier O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, the most ever by any driver, and 69 wins in the Craftsman Truck Series — which is also the most by any driver. Busch won his final truck race at Dover on May 15, piloting the Spire Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet. This weekend at Nashville, Rajah Caruth will drive that truck in Busch’s place.
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While driving for Joe Gibbs Racing from 2008 through 2022, Busch captured a pair of Cup Series championships in 2015 and 2019 driving the No. 18 Toyota — often with an M&M’s sponsorship plastered across his hood.
Busch is the only driver to win at least one Cup Series race in 19 consecutive seasons, doing so from 2005 through 2023. In another example of the pure, raw racing talent that Busch possessed, he is the only driver ever to win each of the three races — the trucks, the O’Reilly Series and the Cup Series — in the same weekend. He did it twice, in 2010 and 2017, at Bristol.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kyle Busch removed from 2026 NASCAR Cup standings following death
