CONCORD, N.C. — Under continued misty skies, the NASCAR Cup Series Garage opened up at 8 AM ET on Saturday morning at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In a respectful gesture, NASCAR allowed the No. 33 Richard Childress Racing team, formerly the No. 8, to unload its Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet Camaro before anyone else to kick off the Coca-Cola 600 race weekend.
It was an emotion-filled few moments as the entire NASCAR Cup Series garage looked on in respect for Richard Childress Racing, which endured an unthinkable loss on Thursday, when legendary driver Kyle Busch lost his life at the age of 41.
Kyle Busch (1985-2026)
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This weekend, the No. 33 Chevrolet, which will be driven by Austin Hill, a 15-time race winner for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, was loaded onto the lift gate on the end of the team’s hauler and descended to the pavement in the garage. As it reached the bottom, the team removed the blocks from behind the rear wheels and rolled the No. 33 Chevrolet to the inspection bay.
After the No. 33 Chevrolet was unloaded, the garage continued to watch out of respect as the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet was unloaded from its team hauler. And once that car was pushed behind the No. 33 Chevrolet in the inspection bay, the remainder of the NASCAR Cup Series garage finally began to thrash on getting their cars pulled from their haulers.
Tears and hugs were shared among many.
Kyle Busch wasn’t just a driver. He wasn’t just a champion. He wasn’t just one of the greatest competitors in the history of the NASCAR Cup Series. He wasn’t just one of the biggest lightning rods who wasn’t afraid to wear the black hat in a sport that has progressively seen its driving talent grow more and more vanilla.
He was a man with a heart bigger than anyone ever understood, a man who gave opportunity to so many within the garage as a team owner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for so many years. On Saturday morning, the respect that Busch had built over his legendary career was on full display, as the garage area was in complete silence as the two Richard Childress Racing cars were unloaded.
It was a touching tribute to the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, who was taken unexpectedly from the world this week. And it was a touching tribute for Richard Childress Racing, a storied organization that has now had to deal with the tragic loss of two of the sport’s greatest driving talents — Dale Earnhardt in 2001, and now Busch.
