The video above is a live stream of WBTV and affiliated programming, and may not be directly related to the article below.
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (WBTV) – A race team had to scrap its plan to run a tribute paint scheme honoring late NASCAR champion Kyle Busch, a representative confirmed.
The team — Mooresville-based Nitro Motorsports — competes in the ARCA Menards Series, which is widely viewed as one level below NASCAR’s top three national series.
Nitro Motorsports initially shared plans for driver Thomas Annunziata to run a Busch-inspired paint scheme, reminiscent of the two-time Cup Series champion’s iconic yellow M&Ms car.
The original plan was for Annunziata to drive the scheme on his No. 70 car during the Friday, July 10 ARCA race at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut. A Nitro Motorsports representative confirmed on Thursday, though, that those plans had been dashed.
The representative said the idea to run the tribute scheme “came together quickly” and the timeline for everyone involved “didn’t work out” and was unable to be sorted out in time.
Following news of Busch’s sudden death from sepsis on May 21, the 21-year-old Annunziata posted that Busch had been his favorite driver since he was a kid.
“He’s one of the biggest reasons I fell in love with racing in the first place,” Annunziata wrote of Busch. “Ever since I got into NASCAR, part of me always hoped that one day I’d get the chance to race against him.”
Currently in his first full-time season in the ARCA Series, Annunziata is challenging for the championship.
Entering this week’s race at Lime Rock Park, he is second in the point standings, trailing only his Nitro Motorsports teammate Jake Bollman. Annunziata has finished in the top 10 in nine of the series’ 11 races in 2026, including five finishes inside the top five.
Annunziata’s lone ARCA win came at Lime Rock Park in 2025, when he started on the pole and led nearly half the race.
ARCA driver Thomas Annunziata’s team scratched plans to run a Kyle Busch tribute scheme at Lime Rock Park.(AP photos)Previous Kyle Busch coverage:
Copyright 2026 WBTV. All rights reserved.