Kurt Busch, Harry Gant, and Ray Hendrick have been elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame as part of the institution’s Class of 2026, NASCAR officially announced in a ceremony on Tuesday evening.
Both Busch and Gant, who had illustrious careers in the NASCAR Cup Series, were the two individuals selected from a ballot of 10 in the Modern Era Ballot of the NASCAR Hall of Fame voting panel. That ballot also included Greg Biffle, Neil Bonnett, Jeff Burton, Tim Brewer, Randy Dorton, Harry Hyde, Randy LaJoie, and Jack Sprague.
Busch is the 2004 champion of the NASCAR Cup Series, and throughout a career that lasted nearly two decades, the Las Vegas, Nevada-native collected 34 victories at NASCAR’s top-level, including triumphs in crown jewel events like the DAYTONA 500 (2017) and Coca-Cola 600 (2010).
Throughout his career, the now 46-year-old driver competed for several top-tier organizations, including Roush Racing, Furniture Row Racing, Team Penske, 23XI Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing, and Phoenix Racing, and Stewart-Haas Racing, among others.
The fan-favorite driver retired from full-time competition following a qualifying crash at Pocono Raceway in 2022.
Gant is an 18-time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series, including a pair of wins in the Southern 500. The Taylorsville, North Carolina-native makes it into the Hall of Fame after his seventh year on the ballot. In 1991, at age 51, Gant went on a run of four consecutive NASCAR Cup Series wins, and with his final win in 1992, became the Cup Series’ oldest winner.
Both Busch and Gant received 61% of the votes on the Modern Era Ballot. Jeff Burton was third, with Harry Hyde, and Randy Dorton rounding out the top-five.
Hendrick (no relation to the championship-winning team owner Rick Hendrick) was chosen as the representative from the Pioneer Ballot, in which he was chosen from a five-option vote that also included Jake Elder, Banjo Matthews, Larry Phillips, and Bob Welborn.
Nicknamed “Mr. Modified”, Hendrick amassed more than 700 victories in modified and late model sportsman competition between 1950 and 1988. Although he never won a modified championship, the driver finished top-10 in standings nine times between 1960 and 1969.
The Richmond, Virginia-native was elected in his second year on the ballot and was named to NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers list and NASCAR Modified’s All-Time Top 10 Drivers.
Hendrick received 31% of the Pioneer Ballot Vote. Bob Welborn was ranked second.
Humpy Wheeler was awarded the 2026 Landmark Award for Outstanding Contributions to NASCAR, among a five-option vote that also included Alvin Hawkins, Lesa France Kennedy, Dr. Joseph Mattioli, and Les Richter.
Wheeler is known for his time as President and General Manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway and helped to usher in a new era of race-track promotions. It was the Belmont, North Carolina-native’s first-ever year on the ballot.
The Hall of Fame Class of 2026 will be officially inducted on January 23, 2026.
