Kyle Busch received a tribute in the middle of the Indy 500 Sunday … with the crowd falling silent out of respect for him during lap 18 — a nod to his former number.

Check out the clip … racers turn out of corner 4 on Lap 17 — and, as they pass the scoring pylon, a picture of Kyle Busch “1985-2026” flashes onscreen.

The Indy 500 crowd — usually a raucous bunch — falls into a subdued silence … while pit crew members can be seen standing at attention.

Lap 18 is one of just many tributes at the Indy 500 to Busch … whose former teammate, Jimmie Johnson, appeared during Fox’s pregame show.

Johnson talked about the respect Busch had from everyone about the sport … while fellow driver Danica Patrick reflected on Busch’s love of racing.

As you know … Busch passed away Thursday after a bout with severe pneumonia that progressed into sepsis, according to his family.

KB won his final race on May 15 — a Truck Series race … and the No. 7 car he used was back in action Sunday as well, though it didn’t have the happy ending sports fans might’ve hoped for.

Driver Corey Day ended up in a hard crash during lap 47 when he received contact from Gio Ruggiero. It’s a scary looking crash … but Day was able to walk off the track under his own power.

Day said, “I just hate it for the No. 7 guys. This is exactly what I didn’t want to do today. I just wanted to deliver them a good run. I feel terrible.”