The 15 nominees for the 2026 NASCAR Hall of Fame Class include Kurt Busch, who won the Cup championship in the first Chase in 2004. Busch is one of the ten nominees for Modern Era that were revealed on Monday. Monday also saw the announcement of five Pioneer Era candidates, which are intended to recognize those whose careers started over 60 years ago. To choose two nominees from the Modern Era and one from the Pioneer Era to be inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2026, NASCAR Hall of Fame voters will convene on May 20. On May 20, the Landmark Award, which recognizes individuals who have significantly impacted NASCAR, will also be chosen. During his 2000–22 career, Busch won 34 races and one Cup title. He won the the 2010 Coca-Cola 600, 2017 Daytona 500 and scored six wins at Bristol, including the night race twice.
In 2014, Busch again participated in the Coca-Cola 600 and the Indianapolis 500. After Kyle Larson failed to get into his car at Charlotte before the race was interrupted by rain last year, he is still the most recent driver to compete in both races on the same day. Randy LaJoie, a two-time Xfinity champion, is another first-time contender for the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The Nomination Committee, which is composed of NASCAR and the NASCAR Hall of Fame representatives, as well as track owners from major facilities and historic short tracks, chose the contenders for the Modern Era Ballot and Landmark Award. The Pioneer Ballot was chosen by the Honors Committee, which was mostly made up of all NASCAR Hall of Famers, Landmark Award winners, and Squier-Hall Award winners.
