The Hendersonville, Tennessee, native will not be driving the No. 21 Ford for Wood Brothers Racing at the conclusion of the 2026 season and after a two-year venture in the Cup Series division.
Denny Hamlin led 40 of 200 laps and rallied from starting at the rear of the field to tie the late Kyle Busch for ninth place on the all-time Cup wins list at 63.
In a press conference at Michigan International Speedway on June 6, 2026, team owner Richard Childress revealed plans to keep Austin Hill as the driver of the No. 33 Cup entry for the remainder of the 2026 season and initial plans of extending Kyle Busch's contract prior to his death.
The three-time Daytona 500 champion from Chesterfield, Virginia, posted a pole-winning lap at 195.117 mph in 36.901 seconds to become the 10th competitor to reach 50 poles in NASCAR's premier series.