Daniel Suarez, Ross Chastain, and Layne Riggs all honored Kyle Busch by executing his signature bow after winning their respective races at Charlotte Motor Speedway during Memorial Day weekend, but the tributes that were held at the 1.5-mile track didn’t erase the pain.
“This weekend is not about us, it’s about Kyle and his family, and I’m super proud to be able to get it done for him,” Suarez said after winning the rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600.
“This has been a difficult week and weekend for all of us—drivers, team owners, media, fans, most important, his family. A few days ago, I was still hoping that somebody was going to say that it wasn’t real.”
Related Story
Busch died unexpectedly Thursday within 24 hours after his severe pneumonia went into sepsis.
“Seeing Samantha (Busch’s wife) today (Sunday) for the first time totally broke my heart,” Suarez continued. “I saw Brexton (the couple’s 11-year-old son) as well. For a split second, I grabbed him and gave him a kiss on his head. There were so many emotions, so many emotions.”
In addition to Busch’s wife and two children, his parents and brother attended pre-race ceremonies in which the two-time NASCAR Cup champion was honored. Drivers, as well as other members of the NASCAR community, gathered around the Busch family while NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell addressed the crowd. Busch’s mother Gaye carried eight white roses that her elder son Kurt laid in a row on his younger brother’s large No. 8 that was painted on the track’s front stretch apron. Family members, the NASCAR industry, and fans wept as bagpipes played the song “Amazing Grace.”
Icon Sportswire//Getty Images
The Coca-Cola 600 39-car field used the missing man formation while executing its pace laps prior to the race’s start. Tyler Reddick, who had the No. 1 starting position, dropped back and left that spot open. On lap 8, the race telecast on Prime went silent as fans held up eight fingers and Kyle Busch banners in the grandstands.
“It was difficult,” Suarez said about the start of the race. “I feel like when I jumped in the car, I wasn’t ready to drive. Many of us were crying. It was tough. We lost a legend, and most importantly, we lost a friend.”
Related Story
Saturday night, inclement weather that included heavy fog and mist shortened the Charbroil 300 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race won by Chastain. The Charbroil 300 was called official after Stage 2 was completed, meaning 91 of the 200 laps were in the books.
The North Carolina Education Lottery 200 Craftsman Truck Series race won by Riggs was run Sunday morning under NASCAR’s adverse conditions time rule. When that rule is used, NASCAR designates a time when the race will end. Once the race leader crosses the start/finish line after the time has expired, the next lap will be the white flag, followed by the checkered flag. There is no overtime under this rule. The time for Sunday’s truck race, which was rescheduled four times during a three-day period due to weather, was noon. In that event, 110 of the scheduled 134 laps were completed.
A North Carolina native, Deb Williams is an award-winning motorsports journalist who is in her fourth decade covering auto racing. In addition to covering the sport for United Press International, she has written motorsports articles for several newspapers, magazines and websites including espnW.com, USA Today, and The Charlotte Observer. Her awards include the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence, two-time National Motorsports Press Association writer of the year, and two-time recipient of the Russ Catlin award. She also has won an award in the North Carolina Press Association’s sports feature category. During her career, Deb has been managing editor of GT Motorsports magazine and was with Winston Cup Scene and NASCAR Winston Cup Scene for 18 years, serving as the publication’s editor for 10 years. In 2024 she was inducted into the NMPA Hall of Fame.