The NASCAR driver died Thursday at 41.

Kyle Busch had ‘shortness of breath’ and was ‘coughing up some blood’ before his death, 911 caller said

The NASCAR driver died Thursday at 41.

By Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt

Raechal Shewfelt is a writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2024. Her work has previously appeared on Yahoo and in American *Journalism Review* and *The Shreveport Times*.

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May 22, 2026 3:50 p.m. ET

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Kyle Busch in February at the Daytona 500. Credit:

Kevin C. Cox/Getty

- NASCAR star Kyle Busch died Thursday at 41, following a medical emergency.

- Audio from the 911 call reveals that he had shortness of breath and was coughing up blood before he was taken to the hospital on Wednesday.

- Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha, and their two children, Brexton and Lennix.

One day after NASCAR legend Kyle Busch died at 41, details about the medical emergency he suffered are emerging.

Someone called 911 on Wednesday to report "an individual with shortness of breath, very hot, thinks he's going to pass out, and he's producing a little bit of blood. Coughing up some blood," according to audio obtained by TMZ Sports.

The caller reported that Busch was awake on the bathroom floor of a training facility in Concord, N.C., at the time. He asked that the ambulance enter the racing facility with its sirens off.

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Busch later died at a hospital in Charlotte, N.C., while "undergoing treatment," his family said in a statement earlier in the day. No cause of death has been shared yet.

After his death, the family, as well as NASCAR and the Richard Childress Racing team that Busch had been part of since 2023, gave a statement to **.

Kyle Busch and his family in February.

Sean Gardner/Getty

"On behalf of the Busch family, everyone at Richard Childress Racing and all of NASCAR, we are devastated to announce the sudden and tragic passing of Kyle Busch," the statement read.

"Our entire NASCAR family is heartbroken by the loss of Kyle Busch. A future Hall of Famer, Kyle was a rare talent, one who comes along once in a generation. He was fierce, he was passionate, he was immensely skilled and he cared deeply about the sport and fans," the statement continued.

The statement also mentioned Busch's "sharp wit and competitive spirit" that "sparked a deep emotional connection with race fans of every age, creating the proud and loyal 'Rowdy Nation.'" With Busch's death, "NASCAR lost a giant of the sport."

Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha, and their two children, Brexton and Lennix.

Busch had been competing in his 22nd full-time NASCAR season. He finished first in more than 200 races, giving him the most wins across the sport's three national series, and he won the Cup Series title in 2015 and 2019. His last win was in 2023.

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NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon was one of the many who lamented the loss on social media.

"This is a devastating loss and one that is hard for the NASCAR community to process," Gordon posted.

"Kyle was a fierce competitor who demanded the very best from himself each time he put on the helmet," Gordon wrote.

"As teammates, I saw firsthand the passion and intensity he brought to the sport every single day," he continued. "He was a champion and prolific racer who made a tremendous impact on NASCAR and was a lifelong advocate for all forms of motor sports. But beyond the track, he loved his family deeply and was incredibly proud of Samantha, Brexton and Lennix. My thoughts are with the entire Busch family during this extremely difficult time."

Retired racer Dale Earnhardt Jr. wrote that he and Busch "had a really challenging existence for many years," but he and "one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history" had managed to fix that.

"We luckily took the time to figure out our differences and that was something he instigated with a conversation in his bus around how we each managed our racing teams," Earnhardt wrote in part. "I was super eager for us to get on better terms. But it was he who made the effort for that to be possible. We did some media together also to laugh through some of the things we put each other through many years ago."

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