When NASCAR increased the annual Craftsman Truck Series race limit on full-time Cup Series drivers with at least three years of Cup experience from five to eight, one driver whom fans assumed would take full advantage of it was Kyle Busch.
Indeed, Busch's schedule consisted of eight races when it was confirmed by Spire Motorsports before the 2026 season began. But the winningest driver in Truck Series history unfortunately only got to compete in four of those eight races before tragically passing away at the age of 41 in May.
Busch won for the 69th and final time in his final Truck Series start at Dover Motor Speedway, doing so less than a week before he died. He also won at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta Motor Speedway) earlier this year and competed at both Bristol Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway.
Even after his passing, Busch's presence was felt throughout the garage when the qualifying metric set the starting lineup for the race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Corey Day replaced Busch in that race, the weekend after Busch's passing, and he did so from pole position, a pole position that was earned by Busch's statistics in the No. 7 Chevrolet this year.
Busch was also supposed to compete at Nashville Superspeedway the following weekend, but Rajah Caruth ended up getting the nod to run that race.
Chase Elliott set to start the North Wilkesboro race Kyle Busch had scheduled
This weekend's race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, where Busch placed ninth a year ago, was supposed to be his second-to-last Truck Series start of the 2026 season. This time, it's Chase Elliott who is set to take his place.
Elliott, another full-time Cup driver, hasn't run a Truck Series race since the 2023 season opener at Daytona International Speedway, when he competed for McAnally-Hilgemann Racing and finished 10th.
But there is perhaps no more fitting driver than Elliott to get the nod to take over Busch's ride at least once before the regular season ends.
Elliott is the eight-time reigning winner of the Most Popular Driver Award, and after Busch's passing, he advocated for Busch to be posthumously voted this year's winner. Bill Elliott, Chase's father and a 15-time winner of the award himself, withdrew his name the year Dale Earnhardt passed away in 2001, and Busch's passing marked the first death of an active Cup driver since then.
Additionally, the most recent of Elliott's three career Truck Series wins came at Charlotte in 2020, and it came ahead of Busch in second. After Busch went five-for-five in the 2019 season, a bounty was placed on him, and any full-time Cup driver who beat him in the Truck Series would win $100,000. Elliott won it in his first attempt and donated a significant portion to Kyle and Samantha Busch's Bundy of Joy Fund.
Beyond this weekend, the eighth and final race on Busch's initial schedule for the 2026 season was the race at Richmond Raceway on Friday, August 14. Spire Motorsports have yet to confirm a driver of the No. 7 truck for that event. In next weekend's race at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, Connor Mosack is set to be back behind the wheel for the seventh time this year.
Tune in to Fox Sports 1 at 12:30 p.m. ET this Saturday, July 18 for the live broadcast of the FaithFest 250 from North Wilkesboro Speedway. Begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss any of the action!
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