A prominent sports medicine expert has raised some questions about the circumstances surrounding the shocking death of NASCAR driver Kyle Busch.
“This was a totally preventable situation,” Dr. Jesse Morse wrote via X to his more than 185k followers on Saturday, May 23.
Busch died at the age of 41 on Thursday, May 21. A representative for the Busch family later revealed that the motorsports icon died of pneumonia that progressed “into sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming associated complications.”
Busch’s death came less than two weeks after he was heard asking his team to have “a shot” ready for him after his race at Watkins Glen International on May 10.
“Hindsight is 2020, but ideally when he was calling for help and a ‘shot’ from his doctor two weeks ago,” Morse wrote. “The proper protocol would’ve been to have him admitted to the hospital and get IV antibiotics with proper monitoring.”
The physician continued, “Based on what we have heard, this was not the case, and his medical team allowed him to maintain his strenuous activities despite this ongoing infection that eventually evolved into pneumonia.”
Busch raced — and won — the following week at Dover, which Morse called “nothing short of extraordinary.”
“It shows you how good of shape he was in and also the power of the mind,” Morse wrote. “Unfortunately, his powerful mind ended up being a double-edged sword, preventing him from getting the proper care he deserved, which unfortunately led to his shocking passing.”
The announcement of Busch’s death came just hours after his family revealed he had been hospitalized with “a severe illness.”
According to a 911 call obtained by TMZ, Busch was “coughing up blood” at a training facility in North Carolina on Wednesday, May 20.
“I’ve got an individual that’s shortness of breath, very hot,” the caller said. “[He] thinks he’s going to pass out, and he’s producing a little bit of blood, coughing up some blood.”
The caller added, “He’s on the bathroom floor right now.”
Busch “became unresponsive” while testing in the Chevrolet racing simulator in Concord, North Carolina, on Wednesday in preparation for the upcoming Coca-Cola 600 held on Sunday, May 24,, according to the Associated Press.
He was then transported to a hospital in nearby Charlotte, where he ultimately died.
“We are saddened and heartbroken to share the news of the passing of Kyle Busch, a two-time Cup champion and one of our sport’s greatest and fiercest drivers,” NASCAR said in a statement on Thursday. “We extend our deepest condolences to the Busch family, Richard Childress Racing and the entire motorsports community.”
Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha, and their two children: son Brexton, 11, and daughter Lennix, 4.
