Kurt Busch Nominated To NASCAR Hall Of Fame

2004 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Kurt Busch has been added to the list of Modern Era nominees for the Class of 2026 NASCAR Hall of Fame.

Busch, who retired from NASCAR racing in 2023 due to a concussion, was joined on the ballot by fellow first-time nominee Randy Lajoie. Lajoie is a two time Xfinity Series champion and owns a racing seat company that supplies many of today’s cars.

Greg Biffle, Neil Bonnett, Tim Brewer, Jeff Burton, Randy Dorton, Harry Gant, Harry Hyde and Jack Sprague are previous nominees returning this year.

Busch made 776 Cup Series starts and had 34 wins including the 2017 Daytona 500. This is his first year of eligibility for the 46-year-old, which allows for competitors with 10 years of competition experience who have been retired for two or more years or are at least 55 years old.

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“I am very grateful to be nominated for NASCAR’s Hall of Fame. It’s an honor to be recognized at this top level. Thank you to NASCAR, my race teams, my family and to the race fans,” Busch wrote on social media.

Jake Elder, Ray Hendrick, Banjo Matthews, Larry Phillips and Bob Welborn are the Pioneer Award nominees on the Pioneer Ballot, which is for those who have been on the Modern Era ballot for more than 10 years and those whose careers started more than 60 years ago. Anyone with 30 or more years of experience is eligible to be nominated for either award at any age.

Promoter H.A. “Humpy” Wheeler, Alvin Hawkins, Lesa France Kennedy, Dr. Joseph Mattioli and Les Richter are the nominees for the Landmark Award, which celebrates outstanding contributions to NASCAR.

Voting for the NASCAR Hall of Fame will take place on May 20th.