diff --git a/pkg/apiserver/registry/system/supportbundle/rest.go b/pkg/apiserver/registry/system/supportbundle/rest.go
index f855f695b12..222bacf66c7 100644
--- a/pkg/apiserver/registry/system/supportbundle/rest.go
+++ b/pkg/apiserver/registry/system/supportbundle/rest.go
@@ -159,7 +159,9 @@ func (r *supportBundleREST) Create(ctx context.Context, obj runtime.Object, _ re
 				r.cache = b
 			}
 		}()
-		r.clean(ctx, b.Filepath, bundleExpireDuration)
+		if b != nil {
+			r.clean(ctx, b.Filepath, bundleExpireDuration)
+		}
 	}()
 
 	return r.cache, nil