What Denny Hamlin said about Kyle Busch After Surprise Death: ‘He Pushed Me to be Better’

Kyle Busch , the two-time NASCAR champion, has died at the age of 41. The Busch family, Richard Childress Racing , and NASCAR issued a joint statement confirming that Busch died after being hospitalized. Reports indicate Busch was using the Chevrolet racing simulator in Concord on Wednesday when he became unresponsive and was transported to a hospital in Charlotte.

No cause of death has been given. Few people in the garage had more insight into what NASCAR has just lost than Denny Hamlin . The Joe Gibbs Racing driver spent 21 years competing against Busch in the Cup Series – including years as his teammate.

Appearing on Good Morning America on Friday, he gave a meaningful tribute to the late driver. On Instagram , Hamlin had written that “we lost our Kobe Bryant. Today we mourn, forever we remember.

Rest in peace, Kyle. ” Appearing alongside Michael Strahan, he elaborated on what made Busch irreplaceable. “I just know that as a race fan, every race that he was in was more exciting to watch than the ones that he wasn’t,” Hamlin said.