Two weeks after Kyle Busch’s untimely death, tributes continue to pour in. In several tributes, many have compared Busch to the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. However, one NASCAR team boss feels different.

"Rowdy," as he came to be known among his fans, was hospitalized for "severe illness " on May 21. But just hours later, he passed away due to ‘pneumonia that progressed into sepsis’. His death has prompted many to draw parallels to that of Dale Sr. in both his sudden death and the impressive legacy they left.

Kaulig Racing CEO Chris Rice spoke about his memories with Kyle Busch during his recent appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. He also spoke about Busch being compared to the 'Intimidator’. 

"I enjoyed my time talking to Kyle, having conversations off the race track, texting back and forth with Kyle. Didn’t have a relationship like Mike Verlander and everybody else had with him, but I enjoyed it. Kyle will be missed, but he’ll never be forgotten because he’s going to be like Dale Earnhardt. Don’t compare him to Dale Earnhardt, but I will say he will be like Dale Earnhardt; he’ll still be selling T-shirts five years down the road."

To back up Rice's statement about selling merchandise, Dale Sr.’s collectables sell even 25 years later after his death. According to a Sports Business Journal article from 2025, Dale Sr.’s merchandise remained in the top 10 for NASCAR merchandising sales. 

Like Dale Sr’s death, Busch’s death left the NASCAR fans shocked. And just like him, "Rowdy" left behind a legacy of 234 wins across all three divisions of NASCAR, along with his record of 19 consecutive seasons with at least one win. 

Chris Rice Revisits Kyle Busch’s Time With  Kaulig Racing

In 2023, Kyle Busch signed with Kaulig Racing to race in the Xfinity series, which is now called the O’Reilly Auto Parts series. He made a total of five appearances for the team in the No. 10 car.

In the aforementioned interview, Rice looked back on his time with Busch during those five races. 

"Those race car drivers don’t forget how to drive. We just sometimes, as race teams, don’t get the race cars or race trucks where they need to be, for those guys to run fast. We had him for five races, and I'll say this, we never did a great job for Kyle."

He further added, "Started at the rear at least twice out of the five times he raced for us. We never really did a good job for Kyle, but I will say that Kyle did help us in our growth of Kaulig Racing."

Busch and Kaulig Racing never visited the victory lap, but for the team, it became one of the most memorable partnerships. A fourth-place finish at Las Vegas was the best they could manage.

Throughout his NASCAR career that spanned over two decades, Kyle Busch bagged 102 victories in the O’Reilly series.

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Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Yask Kotak