Kyle Busch had his best overall race of the season on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway, but it went off the rails as he wrecked John Hunter Nemechek before taking the white flag.
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The Fox Sports cameras didn't initially capture the surprising incident in real time. These cameras focused on the battle for the win between Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin. Busch and Nemechek battled for 12th while coming to the white flag.
Yet, replay and in-car cameras provided a better look. Busch appeared to clear himself on the nose of Nemechek's No. 42 Toyota. This sent both cars into the wall.
"And then he just wrecks him."
Here's what happened between John Hunter Nemechek and Kyle Busch coming to the white flag at Texas. pic.twitter.com/yoiFoZYtl7
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) May 3, 2026
As they entered the next turn, Busch's car swerved right and door-slammed Nemechek's. This sent the No. 42 hard into the outside wall, destroying the right side in the process.
The race remained green despite the wreck. Nemechek made it down onto the apron of the track and onto pit road. He got out of the way as Elliott came back to take the checkered flag and the win.
"Oh, frustration," analyst Clint Bowyer said after watching the replay. "Ran in the top 10 all day, had good things going on, ends up 20th."
Busch did not initially address the incident directly after the race. He provided a mandatory quote to Richard Childress Racing in which he said he had some damage to his No. 8 Chevrolet. Although he then posted SMT data while saying that he did not start the incident with Nemechek.
I did not start this. The 42 apparently doesn’t know where the RS of his car is and where he is in relation to the outside wall. There was 2 ft outside him and I was judging my left side tires to the hash marks. Always know who your racing beside. 🤬 https://t.co/7IxSUMePzm pic.twitter.com/AqSl5TlNsa
— Kyle Busch (@KyleBusch) May 3, 2026
"Disappointing end to the day for the No. 8 zone Watermelon Chevrolet team, but we are making steps in the right direction," Busch said. "We ran in the top-10 for most of the race today at Texas Motor Speedway, and started the weekend with a solid sixth-place qualifying effort.
"Unfortunately, we ended up with right-front damage after contact battling for position on the final lap. It turned our top-10 day into a 20th-place result."
— Skid (@WhoisSkid) May 3, 2026
Nemechek, for comparison, provided a different comment about the wreck. He expressed his frustration with his former Truck Series team owner on social media after being credited with a 21st-place finish.
"(Not) freaking clear. great day going. and just got wrecked. what an ass," Nemechek posted on X after watching the replay of the incident.
