NASCAR’s Kyle Larson, an Elk Grove native, reacts to death of driver Kyle Busch
Various members of the racing community paid tribute on Thursday to NASCAR driver Kyle Busch, following the stunning news of his death at 41.
Among those who publicly mourned Busch’s passing was one prominent driver with ties to the Sacramento region.
Kyle Larson, who grew up in Elk Grove and is the reigning champion of the NASCAR Cup Series, having won it in 2025, wrote a post Thursday on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.
Larson wrote that he’d been “completely heartbroken” hearing of Busch’s death. “I have so many memories of great battles with him throughout my career that I’ll cherish forever,” Larson wrote. “It’s hard to even put into words what he meant to me and my career, whether he knew it or not. He was the bar we all measured ourselves against. Just a pure racer to the core. As real as they come.” The post also contained Larson’s sympathies for Busch’s family.
Larson didn’t elaborate in the post on his battles with Busch, though people in a NASCAR Subreddit seemed familiar with the rivalry the two had shared.
One Reddit user, bearinsac, wrote that he hadn’t thought of Larson as a potential stock car champion “until that battle at Bristol his rookie season in the nationwide series where him and Busch went back and forth in the closing laps and he ultimately lost to Busch. In only his 4th race in the series.”
No cause of death has been released for Busch, though he had been hospitalized prior to his death. TMZ reported Friday that a 911 caller had reported Busch coughing blood sometime in the days leading to his death.
Larson didn’t immediately response to an interview request Friday from The Sacramento Bee.
This story was originally published May 22, 2026 at 12:00 PM.
