Driver Romain Grosjean will compete with his car bearing the number 18, the same number Busch used from 2008 through the 2022 NASCAR Cup season.

How Kyle Busch will be honored in Indy500 tribute after his sudden death at 41

Driver Romain Grosjean will compete with his car bearing the number 18, the same number Busch used from 2008 through the 2022 NASCAR Cup season.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

EW's editorial guidelines

May 24, 2026 12:11 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Kyle Busch on May 15, 2026. Credit:

Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

- Kyle Busch will be honored at the Indy500 with a special tribute after his sudden death at 41.

- Driver Romain Grosjean's race car will sport the number 18, the same number Busch used from 2008 through 2022.

- The racing pro died on May 21 after his severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, his family said in a statement.

Days after Kyle Busch's unexpected death, his motorsports family continues to keep his legacy alive.

Dale Coyne Racing will honor the lauded NASCAR driver, who died at 41 on May 21, in the Indianapolis 500 courtesy of a special tribute on fellow racer Romain Grosjean's Honda. Grosjean will compete in the 110th running of the event while bearing the number 18, the same number Busch used from 2008 through the 2022 NASCAR Cup season.

While fans have witnessed Busch drive under several different numbers throughout NASCAR's three national series — including 5 and 8 — he drove under the number 18 for 56 of his 63 Cup wins.

Sports Business Journal confirmed Grosjean's tribute, noting that Coyne is also changing the font on Grosjean's 2026 Indy500 challenger in an effort to make the tribute as accurate as possible. Now, its font will mirror the font Busch used for his 14 years at Joe Gibbs Racing.

Romain Grosjean racing on May 22, 2026, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty

This is just one of several tributes being orchestrated for Busch amid an outpouring of love from his fans and colleagues. On Friday, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway held a moment of silence for Busch ahead of Carb Day, the Indy500 kickoff. Additionally, it will light the pylon on lap 18 on Sunday to honor Busch.

Fans at the Coca-Cola 600, in which Busch was set to compete before his death, have shared that Busch's No. 8 has been freshly painted on the infield grass entering turn 1 of the racetrack. Elsewhere, Richard Childress Racing will suspend the use of No. 8 on its car, instead using 33 during the race.

On Saturday, Busch's race car was unloaded from storage at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., per video that NASCAR shared on X. The garage remained "silent" in a somber tribute to the late driver during the unloading.

Busch died Thursday after a case of severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, his family announced in a statement on Saturday. On Wednesday, an individual called 911 to report "an individual with shortness of breath" who was "very hot" and "coughing up some blood," according to audio obtained by TMZ Sports. The caller reported that the man, Busch, was awake on the bathroom floor of a training facility in Concord and had asked for an ambulance to enter the racing facility with its sirens off.

Kyle Busch on March 7, 2026.

Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty

The following day, Busch died at a hospital in Charlotte, N.C., while "undergoing treatment." His family, NASCAR, and the Richard Childress Racing team that Busch had been part of since 2023, confirmed his death in a statement to **.

"Our entire NASCAR family is heartbroken by the loss of Kyle Busch," they said. "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."

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

The statement added that Busch's "sharp wit and competitive spirit" created a "deep emotional connection" with this fans, deemed the Rowdy Nation, and that with his death, "NASCAR lost a giant of the sport."

The celebrated racer has finished first in more than 200 races, giving him the most victories across the sport's three national series. At the time of his death, Busch had been competing in his 22nd full-time NASCAR season.

- Celebrities & Creators

- Celebrity Death Tributes

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Celebrity”