Somber mood surrounds Coca-Cola 600 as drivers prepare to race three days after Kyle Busch's death

Connor Zilisch described feeling depressed after scrolling social media posts about Kyle Busch, making it difficult to motivate himself to go to the racetrack for the Coca-Cola 600. Busch’s family said severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, causing rapid complications that led to his death. The weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway carried a somber mood after rain washed out qualifying and the sky remained overcast. Joey Logano said the garage atmosphere felt eerie and abnormal, with fewer smiles and heavy emotions. Zane Smith said the situation did not seem real and called Busch “Superman.” Ross Chastain said the only way he knows to cope is to “Go race.”

"For the first time in his life, Zilisch had a hard time getting himself motivated to go to the racetrack. He's not the only one grappling with the sudden and tragic death of the sport's 41-year-old superstar. On Sunday night, 39 Cup Series drivers return to the track for the Coca-Cola 600 just three days after the death of Busch, who had more wins (234) than anyone across NASCAR's three national series."

"Severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis and resulted in rapid and overwhelming complications that led to Busch's death, according to a statement released Saturday by his family. "It just doesn't feel like a real race weekend," Zilisch said. "Like the entire vibe in the garage, it's eerie here. It's gloomy. It's just, it's gonna be tough come Sunday for sure. There's gonna be a lot of emotion. It's gonna be sad.""

"Former Busch rival Joey Logano said there is simply nothing normal about this weekend. "It's definitely a very different vibe. I never really felt anything like this before at the racetrack," Logano said. "... You just kind of see less smiles and everybody is sad. It's an emotion that we're all feeling - as raw as it can be - and we're all trying to handle it in our own way. There are some pretty heavy emotions on our hearts.""

"Added driver Zane Smith: "This doesn't seem real. ... He was Superman." Defending race champion Ross Chastain said he knows only one way to deal with Busch's death. "Go race," said Chastain, who celebrated the come-from-behind 2025 win by slamming watermelo"

Read at ABC11 Raleigh-Durham