A tribute to the late Kyle Busch will appear in iRacing Studios' upcoming NASCAR 26 title, it has been revealed, with the driver selectable in Quick Race and Multiplayer modes.
NASCAR 26 will feature Kyle Busch as a selectable driver in Quick Race and Multiplayer modes
Busch family gives blessing to his appearance in-game
Tribute sticker to be made available in car creator mode
In a recent Discord AMA with iRacing Studios’ Director of Production, Matt Lewis, it was revealed that the upcoming NASCAR 26 will feature a Kyle Busch tribute.
Bush winning at Texas in 2016. Image courtesy of NASCAR
Even despite that last Craftsman Truck Series victory in Dover, Busch was the driver with the most wins across all three of NASCAR’s top series: Trucks, O’Reilly Auto Parts and Cup. Outside of racing. Busch was also involved in several philanthropic ventures, including his own Kyle Busch Foundation.
This sat at odds with his often divisive public persona, which he often played up to, although he still remained a popular figure among the NASCAR community.
‘He’s not just one of the greats, he’s one of the best to ever do it, right?’ said Lewis.
Winner
A Kyle Busch tribute at the Coca-Cola 600 race, Charlotte, 2026
‘The man is a winner through and through: that showed in his personality on and off the track,’ continued Lewis.
‘And, you know, we worked very closely with NASCAR, with RCR [Richard Childress Racing, Busch’s race team from 2023], with KBM [Kyle Busch Motorsports] and the family, and just wanted to make sure that we do things respectfully and the right way,’ he continued.
‘And so you’re going to see some tribute things in the UI. You’re going to see that tribute sticker that just rolled by in chat [via the Discord AMA] that’s going to be available in the car creator, and then he will be selectable in the Cup Series.
‘So you’ll be able to choose him as a driver; he won’t show up in the AI field, but for those that want to use him in Quick Race and in Multiplayer, he will be available.
‘And that’s, like I said, that’s just a nod to one of the greats. And we feel the exact same way that you do: love him or hate him, he was a winner, and he was tough to beat, and he was all those things on the racetrack that you want a race driver to be,’ he concluded.
NASCAR 26 will be released on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S on 18th September.
I love Kyle Busch he’s My favorite driver and I will race for Kyle Busch on nascar 26 game that I pre ordered on Xbox series x, and Kyle Busch will be watching me and he’s always in my heart, and hopefully I’ll race as Kyle Busch on all three national series on nascar 26 on Xbox series x, it will be a perfect tribute for me.
Discussion
I love Kyle Busch he’s My favorite driver and I will race for Kyle Busch on nascar 26 game that I pre ordered on Xbox series x, and Kyle Busch will be watching me and he’s always in my heart, and hopefully I’ll race as Kyle Busch on all three national series on nascar 26 on Xbox series x, it will be a perfect tribute for me.