BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) — Ty Gibbs' car will be adorned in the multicolored M&M's paint scheme made famous by former teammate Kyle Busch during the NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway next month, Busch's widow announced Thursday.
“Bristol was always one of Kyle’s favorite tracks,” Samantha Busch wrote on X. “He loved racing under the lights, found so much success there, and the iconic M&M’S car holds some of the best memories of his career and our life together.”
Busch, 41, died May 21 after severe pneumonia progressed into sepsis, resulting in rapid and overwhelming complications.
Busch and the No. 18 Toyota M&M’s car were synonymous when he drove for Joe Gibbs Racing from 2008-22. He moved to Richard Childress Racing in 2023.
Busch won nine Cup Series races and a total of 23 NASCAR races at Bristol.
Ty Gibbs, 23, is coming off his second win of the season at the Cup Series race in Iowa.
He posted pictures of the M&M's car on Instagram and wrote, “Excited for Bristol. Gonna be a cool (one)... So honored to drive this.”
Samantha Busch wrote it would be “heartbreaking” to be at Bristol without Kyle. The race is Sept. 19.
“He should be there,” she wrote. “But I’m so grateful to be able to tell you that those iconic M&M’S colors will be coming back to Bristol, one last time, on the 54 car. It’s a chance to honor him at a place he loved so much, surrounded by our NASCAR family and the fans who loved him too. I know Kyle would want us to be there, to keep showing up, keep racing, and keep carrying his legacy forward.”
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Ty Gibbs celebrates after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026, at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
FILE - Kyle Busch waves to fans while doing a victory lap after winning the second of two 150-mile qualifying races for Sunday's NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., Feb. 21, 2013. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)
BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Amy Hunt pulled away from British teammate Dina Asher-Smith down the home straight to win the 200-meter final Thursday for her second gold medal this week at the European Championships.
Hunt, who won the 100-meter title on Monday, pulled even with Asher-Smith around the turn and eventually edged ahead to finish in 22.19 seconds at Alexander Stadium.
Ireland's Rhasidat Adeleke made a late surge to take silver, with Asher-Smith settling for bronze.
The 24-year-old Hunt is shooting for four gold medals in Birmingham. She's set to compete in two relays.
Mark English won the men's 800-meter final to become the first Irish man to win a European championships gold medal.
The 33-year-old English — a doctor — rounded the final turn and passed Croatia's Marino Bloudek to cross the line in 1 minute, 45.26 seconds as a big contingent of Irish fans in Birmingham celebrated.
Bloudek took silver and Spain's Mohamed Attaoui was third.
English previously won bronze in the 2014 and 2022 editions.
Swiss star Audrey Werro was given a spot in the 800-meter final after falling in her semifinal at the European championships.
The ruling keeps Werro on course for Friday night's gold medal showdown with reigning Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson and Dutch star Femke Broeders-Bol.
Werro was leading her heat at Alexander Stadium when she fell. Footage showed Anais Bourgoin's left hand making contact with Werro's right foot before Werro tumbled on the last bend.
In late June, Werro ran the third fastest women’s time ever: 1 minute, 53.80 seconds.
After Thursday's fall, she got up and jogged across the line in 2:35.35. She appealed her placing and was successfully advanced to the final.
She said, “Everything was good and suddenly I was on the ground. I just have some scratches and my bib number was ripped off but I’m OK. The body is fine.”
Hodgkinson, the Briton who has frequently talked about wanting to break the 800 world record, won the other semifinal heat in 1:57.38, just ahead of Broeders-Bol, who has impressed in her first year in the 800 after switching from the 400 hurdles.
The women’s 800 world record of 1:53:28 was set in 1983 by Jarmila Kratochvilova.
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Mark English of Ireland celebrates after winning the gold medal in the men's 800 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Dina Asher-Smith of Britain, Amy Hunt of Britain and Rhasidat Adeleke of Ireland, cross the finish line to win in the women's 200 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Amy Hunt of Britain poses with her gold medal after winning the women's 200 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Morgan Harlow)
Netherlands' Femke Broeders-Bol and Britain's Keely Hodgkinson compete in a women's 800 meters semifinal at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Switzerland's Audrey Werro reacts after crossing the finish line in last place after falling to the ground during a women's 800 meters semifinal at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Switzerland's Audrey Werro approaches the finish line in last place after falling to the ground during a women's 800 meters semifinal at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
