The NASCAR ‘doctor’ Kyle Busch requested days before his sudden death from a severe illness isn’t a doctor at all, but a physician’s assistant who has spent years working with stockcar teams.
Busch was apparently battling a sinus issue towards the end of a NASCAR Cup Series race in Watkins Glen, New York on May 10 when he radioed his pit crew to ask for the help of Bill Heisel, a certified PA who has worked with the stock car circuit for years.
‘Can somebody try to find Bill Heisel?’ Busch asked the Richard Childress Racing crew. ‘He’s the kindred doctor guy. Tell him I need him after the race, please… I’m gonna need a shot.’
Busch would go on to finish eighth and later told The Athletic on May 16 that he was still battling a cold prior to last Sunday’s All-Star race in Dover, Delaware. Then on Thursday, he was abruptly pulled out of this Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 after being hospitalized in Charlotte with a ‘severe illness.’
He was pronounced dead later in the day.
Heisel has not been accused of any wrongdoing. And although Busch referred to Heisel as a ‘doctor’ rather than a physician’s assistant, Heisel is not accused of misrepresenting himself or his work.
Kyle Busch waves to fans in Fort Worth, Texas before a race earlier this month
A physician’s assistant, Bill Heisel has worked with NASCAR teams going back years
NASCAR officials did not immediately respond to The Daily Mail’s Friday-morning request for further details on the shot Busch asked for on May 10 in Watkins Glen.
Heisel’s former employer, OrthoCarolina, has released a statement expressing condolences to the Busch family, while explaining that the physician’s assistant ended his time at the practice last year.
‘We are aware of media reports referencing Bill Heisel, PA-C [Physician Assistant – Certified],’ read the statement from OrthoCarolina. ‘Bill served as OrthoCarolina’s Director of Motorsports Medicine for more than a decade before departing in November 2025 to pursue full-time motorsports medicine with a private organization.’
The OrthoCarolina spokesperson ended the statement by explaining the practice is ‘no longer’ involved in motorsports medicine.
The Daily Mail’s attempts to contact Heisel have been unsuccessful thus far.
Previously, Heisel worked with North Carolina pro sports franchises like the NFL’s Carolina Panthers and NBA’s Charlotte Hornets. Then, in the early 2000s, he began working in NASCAR when he noticed racing teams lacked the medical resources of other sports.
And Heisel doesn’t just work with drivers. As he told SpectrumLocalNews.com in 2023, the crews keep him busier.
‘We probably see more injuries associated with pit crews than we do drivers in the grand scheme of things,’ Heisel said.
Heisel even co-authored a 2016 study on NASCAR-related injuries, most of which involved accidents or syndromes caused by heavy electrical equipment. Drivers, the study concluded, were most at risk for ‘neuropathies, such as hand-arm vibration syndrome.’
Kyle Busch is survived by his wife, Samantha, son Brexton, and daughter Lennix
It remains unclear, exactly, what killed Busch. He claimed last week that he was still dealing with the sinus problems that bothered him in Watkins Glen.
‘You can kind of still hear it, I’m still not great, but the cough was pretty substantial last week,’ Busch told The Athletic on May 16.
He would later win a NASCAR Truck Series race before his health took a downward turn this week.
As reported by The Associated Press, Busch became unresponsive while using a racing simulator in Concord, North Carolina on Wednesday. He was later transported to a Charlotte hospital, where he was pronounced dead on Thursday.
‘I’ve got an individual that’s shortness of breath, very hot, thinks he’s going to pass out, and he’s producing a little bit of blood, coughing up some blood,’ the caller told 911 operators on Wednesday evening.
