Richard Childress Racing will stop using the No. 8 associated with Kyle Busch after his death this week, leaving the number parked until his son Brexton is ready. RCR will race the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway with a different car number instead.
The door on Kyle Busch’s No. 8 will stay closed for now.
On Friday, May 22, Richard Childress Racing announced it is suspending use of the number Busch made famous in the NASCAR Cup Series. Busch, a two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, died Thursday, May 21 at age 41 after being hospitalized with a severe illness, with no cause of death released.
RCR said it will instead switch to the No. 33 Chevrolet starting this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Coca-Cola 600. Austin Hill is set to drive the No. 33 Chevrolet at Charlotte in what would have been Busch’s scheduled start.
The team’s message carried the weight of what’s now missing from the garage: Busch’s No. 8 remains reserved for his family, not reassigned.
Richard Childress Racing said the number will remain unused until Busch’s son, Brexton Busch, is ready to take it over. Busch shared two children with his wife, Samantha: son Brexton, 11, and daughter Lennix, 4.
RCR said Kyle Busch was instrumental in the design of RCR’s stylized No. 8 and that it became synonymous with Kyle and a symbol for his fans and the NASCAR industry. The team said no one can carry it forward to the level that he did, adding that the No. 8 is “reserved and ready for Brexton Busch when he is ready to go NASCAR racing.”.
What happens to that legacy on the track is no longer theoretical. Brexton has already spent years building a record of his own. with more than 150 victories across Outlaw Karts. Micro Sprints. and Bandolero Bandits. along with a Bandolero Bandits National Championship. He has gone 23 for 33 with 28 podiums, according to the record cited by the team. Brexton also won the Golden Driller at the Tulsa Shootout in the JR Sprint division.
His path has included a start at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He made his Legends car debut at Charlotte’s Summer Shootout and won in his fifth start. This year, he stepped up to full-size stock cars, racing the JR Late Model division at Madera Speedway in California for Wilson Motorsports.
For Busch, the timing of this week’s turn is stark. Before his death, he was dealing with illness in recent weeks. Three days earlier. he posted a birthday tribute on Instagram to Brexton. who turned 11 on May 18. writing: “You’re the best kid on and off the track. you amaze us every day. ” and adding. “Keep doing what you’re doing and there is no limit to what you’ll accomplish.”.
The reporting details surrounding the final hours point to how sudden the loss was. Busch died Thursday, May 21 after being hospitalized with a severe illness. No cause of death has been released. The account also says Busch was coughing up blood when emergency responders were called to a General Motors facility in Concord. N.C. on the day before he died. based on a 911 call obtained during reporting.
Busch’s career achievements sit behind RCR’s decision to put the No. 8 on pause. He won 63 Cup Series races and 234 total across NASCAR’s three national series. He spent the final three seasons at Richard Childress Racing after 15 years at Joe Gibbs Racing. where he won the Cup championships in 2015 and 2019. His 63 Cup victories rank ninth on NASCAR’s all-time win list.
The sequence of events has left the sport in a difficult position: NASCAR’s calendar moves toward the Coca-Cola 600, while RCR has chosen to keep the number that anchored Kyle Busch’s identity out of rotation.
For this weekend, the answer is operational. RCR will race at Charlotte with Austin Hill behind the wheel of the No. 33 Chevrolet. The symbolic one—whether the No. 8 will return—has been deferred, with the team saying it will wait for Brexton Busch to be ready.
Kyle Busch Richard Childress Racing NASCAR No. 8 No. 33 Brexton Busch Charlotte Motor Speedway Coca-Cola 600 Austin Hill U.S. sports