Samantha Busch shared a heartfelt message recalling Kyle Busch’s bonding with Brexton Busch. Her Instagram post came after the 11-year-old won his first race since Busch’s passing.
Samantha has remained supportive of Brexton’s career amidst the tragic loss. She attended his first race back at the Charlotte Summer Shootout, where the young upstart honoured his late father with the No.18 entry. Busch famously ran the number during his JGR days.
Brexton recently competed in the dirt race at Oklahoma’s Port City Raceway and clinched the checkered flag. Samantha shared a clip of them embracing each other and wrote:
“First win since losing Kyle. I’ve never felt so proud and so heartbroken at the same time.
Brexton continues to amaze me with his determination, his resilience, the way he keeps showing up to do what he loves even while carrying so much at such a young age.”“Watching him celebrate, all I could think about was Kyle. There was nothing that made him happier than watching Brex race, spending the day tinkering on his car and then being the first one sprinting to Victory Lane with that huge grin on his face,” she added.
Samantha also mentioned that Kyle Busch would be proud of the feat. Brexton, on his part, paid tribute to the two-time Cup champion by performing his signature bow on victory lane.
Busch passed away on May 21 from bacterial pneumonia and complications with sepsis. He was driving through the illness for multiple weeks before tragedy struck.
Brexton Busch reflects on missing Kyle Busch after Port City win
Brexton Busch has garnered the support of NASCAR fans and drivers alike. Furthermore, Richard Childress Racing has retired Kyle Busch’s No.8 entry in favour of Brexton.
RCR announced that the number is reserved for Brexton for when he makes his way to NASCAR. After Saturday’s win, the teenager took to X to share an emotional post on his late father.
“My first win since my dad passed. I don’t like to talk about it much, but the last two months have been really tough. I’m missing my crew chief, my driver coach, my dad, the guy who I looked up to more anyone. I know he would be proud the way I ran the top (much better than him lol) to win my first Micro A-Main at Port City. We love and miss you so much dad,” he wrote.
Brexton Busch won the biggest race of his career when he earned the prestigious Golden Driller trophy in the 2025 Tulsa Shootout Junior Sprint Championship. More recently, he won the 2026 Restricted Micro KKM Challenge at Plaza Park Raceway.
Brexton has also raced against Kyle Busch on multiple occasions. Their final outing was at the 2026 Tulsa Shootout Heat Race, where Brexton finished third and beat his late father by a two-point margin.
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