This past Thursday, the NASCAR world mourned the loss of the legendary Kyle Busch. The 41-year-old driver from Las Vegas notched 63 wins in the Cup Series, to go along with two championships. He was also the all-time wins leader in the O’Reilly Series (102) and the Craftsman Truck Series (69). One of his most famous achievements, however, is that he was NASCAR’s all-time leader in total wins across the top three national touring series (234). After each win, he celebrated by taking a bow, one of Las Vegas’s most famous traditions. Nicknamed “Rowdy” in reference to Rowdy Burns from Days of Thunder, the “Wild Thing” due to his aggressive, short-fused driving style, and the “Candy Man” during his 15-year partnership with MARS, Inc., Busch may have had doubters… but most importantly, he had friends, family, and fans. It is time to revisit ten of Kyle’s greatest moments throughout his NASCAR career that spanned two decades.

1. First career Cup Series win: 2005 Sony HD 400 at California

On September 4, 2005, Kyle Busch notched his first Cup Series victory in the season’s 25th race at California Speedway. Holding off the late Greg Biffle on an overtime restart by 0.554 seconds, the then driver of the #5 Kellogg’s Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports became the youngest winner in NASCAR history at the time (20 years, 4 months, 2 days). He led a race-high 95/254 laps. This was eventually broken by Joey Logano nearly four years later (19 years, 1 month, 4 days). Busch would finish 20th in 2005 points, notching a second win at the penultimate race in Phoenix.

2. First win with Joe Gibbs: 2008 Kobalt Tools 500 at Atlanta

Following the 2007 season, Kyle Busch was let go from Hendrick Motorsports in favor of Casey Mears and Dale Earnhardt Jr. When Joe Gibbs Racing announced that JJ Yeley would not return to the #18 in 2008, Busch joined forces with the coach. It was also a major turning point in the history of JGR, as they switched manufacturers from Chevrolet to Toyota. On March 9, 2008, in the season’s fourth race at Atlanta, Carl Edwards blew an engine from the lead with 52 laps to go. Kyle took advantage of his rival’s issue, leading a race-high 173/325 laps to secure his first win in the candy-coated #18 Toyota. Despite winning 8 races (2nd most behind Edwards, with 9), Rowdy finished 10th in points.

3. Busch passes Martin: 2011 Food City 250 at Bristol

On August 26, 2011, Rowdy broke Mark Martin’s O’Reilly Series win record with his 50th series win at Bristol Motor Speedway. Holding off teammate Logano in a 0.019-second photo finish, and leading a staggering 186/250 laps from the pole, Busch would take the season sweep at the “Last Great Colosseum.” He would go on to win 52 more races afterwards.

4. First win following brutal injury: 2015 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma

Just one day before the 57th Annual Daytona 500, Busch sustained a compound fracture in his right leg and a broken left foot after a high-speed head-on collision with the inside wall late in the O’Reilly Series race. He would miss the first 11 races of the Cup Series season, with the likes of Matt Crafton, David Ragan, and Erik Jones deputising. On June 28, 2015, in just his fifth race back from injury, Kyle took advantage of the race’s final caution by making a pit stop, while the dominant Jimmie Johnson stayed out. After passing Johnson promptly, he went on to win by 0.532 over his brother, Kurt Busch. The spark to Rowdy’s comeback also marked the first of four times in Cup Series history where the Busch brothers finished 1-2 in a race.

5. First Cup Series title: 2015 Ford 400 at Homestead

On November 22, 2015, after a season full of adversity, Kyle Busch found himself competing against Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, and Martin Truex Jr. for a shot at his first NASCAR Cup Series title in the series’ “Final 4” race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. After a debris caution was thrown in the final ten laps, Busch passed dominant non-title competitor Brad Keselowski on the ensuing restart and went on to hold off rival Harvick by 1.552 seconds. Rowdy’s 5-win 2015 championship taught drivers that in the second season of the playoff format, it was never too late to catch up, even after only competing in 25 of the season’s 36 races.

6. 200 career victories: 2019 Auto Club 400 at Auto Club

Back at where his winning ways all started… Busch’s dominant win on March 17, 2019, cemented a significant milestone in his career: tying Richard Petty for most wins across NASCAR’s top three divisions, at 200. With 134/200 laps led, guess who he beat by 2.354 seconds? Joey Logano, again. What’s even more impressive is that he had come back from a pit road speeding penalty earlier in the race.

7. Busch passes Hornaday: 2019 Ultimate Tailgating 200 at Atlanta

On February 23, 2019, Busch became the winningest driver in the history of the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series by winning the Ultimate Tailgating 200 at Atlanta. His 52nd career win surpassed fellow series legend Ron Hornaday Jr.’s total. Kyle led 92 of the 130 laps, and outdueled Johnny Sauter by 0.932 seconds. This would be the first of four consecutive races he won during that time frame. In the end, Rowdy would go on to add 17 more victories to his Truck Series resumé.

8. Second Cup Series title: 2019 Ford 400 at Homestead

Four years after his unremarkable 2015 title, Busch sought a title without missing a race for the first time in his career. Not only would he have to finish ahead of Kevin Harvick again, but he also had to worry about his teammates, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin. Taking advantage of costly mistakes made by his teammates and Harvick’s inability to keep up, Rowdy led a race-high 120/267 laps to put a second Cup Series title in his trophy case. He held off Truex by a whopping 4.578 seconds. What’s ironic is that just like in 2015, Kyle won a total of five races that season.

9. Final career Cup Series win: 2023 Enjoy Illinois 300 at Gateway

A seemingly perfect day in NASCAR’s second-ever race at Gateway turned out to be the last time fans would see Kyle Busch in NASCAR Cup Series victory lane. Starting from the pole, Rowdy led 121/243 laps, outlasting former JGR Teammate Denny Hamlin by 0.517 seconds. A notable storyline from this race was the absence of Chase Elliott, who was suspended for intentionally wrecking Hamlin at the previous race, the Coca-Cola 600. Carson Hocevar also made his Cup Series debut, finishing dead last after a crash.

10. “You never know when the last one is:” 2026 ECOSAVE 200 at Dover

Last but not least, Kyle delivered his famous speech: “You never know when the last one is. I know all too well, unfortunately, with the Cup stuff, but here with the Truck stuff now, it’s awesome to be part of Spire Motorsports.” He did this by winning his final-ever NASCAR race in the Truck Series’ first event at Dover in nearly six years on May 15, 2026. The question remains, who was the last man to lose to Kyle Busch, who led 147/200 laps, by 3.039 seconds? None other than Ty Majeski. This would be Busch’s 69th and final career win in the series.

Honorable Mentions

• 2004 UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400 at Las Vegas: Busch’s first Cup Series start, albeit on home soil. He finished 41st after crashing 11 laps in.
• 2004 Funai 250 at Richmond: Rowdy secures his first O’Reilly Series win in dominating fashion. Leading 236/250 laps, he defeated the late Greg Biffle by 0.150 seconds.
• 2005 Quaker Steak & Lube 200 at Charlotte: Busch wins his first Truck Series race in overtime. With 77/136 laps led, he beat Terry Cook by 0.149 seconds.
• 2007 Food City 500 at Bristol: Rowdy becomes NASCAR’s first winner in its new “Car of Tomorrow” (Gen 5) car. He beats Jeff Burton by a mere 0.064 seconds in an overtime restart.
• 2009 Shelby 427 at Las Vegas: Busch’s first (And only) Cup Series win at his home track. Winning from the pole position, he beat Clint Bowyer by 0.411 seconds.
• 2009 Federated Auto Parts 300 at Nashville: Busch makes headlines after smashing a guitar (Which acted as a trophy) in victory lane.
• 2010 Bristol (Summer) race weekend: Kyle becomes the first driver to sweep the Truck, O’Reilly, and Cup Series races in a single weekend. He would go on to do this again at the same Bristol (Summer) weekend in 2017.
• 2015-2016 Brickyard 400s at Indianapolis: Rowdy gets to “Kiss the bricks” at Indianapolis in back-to-back seasons, both in his Skittles-sponsored Toyota Camry. 
• 2018 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte: Kyle Busch finally tames NASCAR’s longest race of the year: the Coca-Cola 600. In his patriotic M&M’s Toyota, the Candy Man led 377/400 laps to beat fellow 600 winner Martin Truex Jr. by 3.823 seconds.
• 2021 Tennessee Lottery 250 at Nashville: 12 years after his iconic victory lane celebration, Busch scores his 100th career O’Reilly Series win in the series’ return to Nashville Superspeedway. He led 122/189 laps and outdueled Justin Allgaier by 1.110 seconds. He announced his retirement from O’Reilly Series competition following that season.
• 2022 Food City Dirt Race at Bristol: Kyle’s first of four wins in NASCAR’s “Next Gen” era is his last with Joe Gibbs Racing and M&M’s. He led just one lap on the night, passing the spinning duo of Tyler Reddick and Chase Briscoe on the final straight to steal the win.
• 2023 Pala Casino 400 at Auto Club: Kyle Busch’s first of three wins with Richard Childress Racing comes in the series’ final race at the Auto Club Speedway before the track’s closure. After taking the lead from the dominant Ross Chastain, Rowdy outran Chase Elliott by nearly 3 seconds.
• 2023 CRC Brakleen 150 at Pocono: Kyle Busch Motorsports scores its 100th and final Truck Series win with its owner behind the wheel. He passed Corey Heim in the tunnel turn on the final lap, beating him by 0.604 seconds.
• Battle of the Busches: These 2025 dirt track events marked the only times when Kyle got to race against his son, Brexton.

While he never won the Daytona 500, Busch is widely regarded as one of the greatest personalities NASCAR has ever seen. He will be dearly missed by his fans and everybody involved in the NASCAR community. 

Richard Childress Racing will preserve the rights to the #8 once Brexton Busch (Currently 11 years old) reaches the Cup Series.