Joe Gibbs Racing will run a special M&M's paint scheme on Ty Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, Sept. 19 at Bristol Motor Speedway, to honor the memory of Kyle Busch, it was announced today in a moving video by Samantha Busch on social media.
The mosaic scheme, which features iconic moments from Busch’s career, is dedicated following his sudden and tragic death on May 21 at the age of 41.
The future NASCAR Hall of Famer dominated the 0.533-mile short track during his career, earning 23 career victories including nine in the Cup Series. He won a combined 22 times on the concrete across NASCAR’s three national series, including eight times in the NASCAR Cup Series and also claimed one Cup Series victory on the Bristol dirt in 2022. Busch swept Bristol's tripleheader weekend twice (2010 and 2017) and remains the only driver in NASCAR history to win all three national-series races in a single weekend.
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“Bristol wasn’t just another race to him," Samantha Busch said today via Instagram video. "He loved everything about that place. The intensity, the energy, the fans and the challenge of racing there. Some of the greatest moments of his career happened on that track in the yellow M&M’s car, which became such an iconic part of Kyle’s legacy. It was so much more than a paint scheme. Kyle became the M&M’s guy.”
Busch spent most of his NASCAR career at JGR, joining the organization in 2008 with backing from Mars. He won 56 of his 63 Cup Series victories with JGR, and 47 of those were with Mars branding on his No. 18 Toyota. Busch won championships in 2015 and 2019, and his last Cup win with both the organization and sponsor came at Bristol dirt in 2022 before moving to Richard Childress Racing.
Additionally, 90 of Busch’s 102 victories in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series came for JGR, and eight of them came under Mars’ support.
“Seeing Mars and Joe Gibbs Racing come together to honor Kyle this way is incredibly emotional to me,” Samantha Busch continued. “The M&M’s car holds so many memories from our life together, and seeing it back on the track knowing Kyle won’t be the one behind the wheel is going to be both heartbreaking and beautiful all at once. To see the No. 54 car carry those iconic colors again, filled with moments from Kyle’s incredible career, feels like bringing a piece of him back to the track he loved so much.
“Kyle loved Bristol and Bristol loved Kyle. Being back with our NASCAR family under the lights to celebrate his life, his career and the memories he gave all of us is something we will never forget. I know he will be right there with us that night.”
Gibbs, grandson of JGR owner Joe Gibbs, took over the organization’s fourth car in 2023 after Busch’s departure to RCR. He sits second in the Cup Series standings after a win last weekend at Iowa Speedway.
The Bass Pro Shops Night Race is scheduled for Sept. 19, the third of 10 Chase races (7:30 p.m. ET, USA Network, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
