Leaving Vegas With a Bitter Style, Can Chris Buescher Escape Playoff Doom With Unprecedented Homestead Ascend?

For twenty-four hours Chris Buescher broke free from his playoff distress. RFK Racing’s #17 driver was not the lowest-seeded racer within the Spherical of 8 playoffs for one whole day. As quickly as Ryan Blaney’s place and factors have been restored by NASCAR, cold-hard actuality set in.

Buescher started racing in Las Vegas 3 factors under the cut-off line. By the point he completed outdoors the High 10, he additional misplaced 20 essential factors. This weekend’s race on the Homestead-Miami Speedway immediately grew to become the one obtainable gasoline for his flickering flame. 

Can Chris Buescher steer RFK Racing’s sinking playoff ship?

The sport plan for Las Vegas was easy sufficient. End inside the High 10, gather as many stage factors as doable, and goal for a win with out jeopardizing present standing. Sadly, Chris Buescher failed on all these counts. Not solely did he lose his playoff standing, he completed in eleventh place with out accumulating any stage factors. A disappointing efficiency certainly from a driver in his career-best racing yr. 

Previous to the playoffs, group proprietor and #6 driver Brad Keselowski centered his consideration on supporting Buescher’s championship ambitions. Keselowski braved questions surrounding his winless season and nonetheless aided his #17 driver’s victory on the Coke Zero Sugar 400. However after Keselowski’s elimination on the Charlotte Roval, he handed on the accountability to the surviving playoff contestant and channeled his loss right into a High 5 end.

Watch this story: Will Brad Keselowski Emerge as HMS & JGR’s Homestead Thorn as He Passes Championship Torch to Chris Buescher?

Now the stakes are even larger for Chris Buescher. The RFK Racing driver must draw from his impeccable kind towards the tip of the common season. Within the span of a month, Buescher amassed three unbelievable victories on three totally different grounds to emerge as a reputable championship contender. For that, nevertheless, Buescher must supersede his less-than-uplifting observe file on the oval. 

Brad Keselowski’s No. 17 driver haunted by his Homestead previous

In 7 Cup races on the 1.5-mile observe, Chris Buescher may solely produce a median end of 19.7 with none High 5 or High 10 finishes. That is additionally the worst common end in Homestead amongst all of the remaining playoff drivers. However that doesn’t imply all is already misplaced. Regardless of beginning twelfth, Buescher received Stage 1 within the 2021 Dixie Vodka 400 race on the observe. 

Nonetheless, a second-stage collision compelled him to complete nineteenth in that race. However this reveals promising potential to duplicate these expertise this weekend. Furthermore, Darlington is commonly thought of closest to the floor in Homestead on account of related tire put on out on each tracks. And Buescher has a High 5 and 4 High 10s on the observe Too Robust to Tame. 

Apart from, there’s a motive why 2023 is touted as Buescher’s coming-of-age when it comes to exemplary racing. He secured 2 High 5s and a High 10 within the first two rounds of playoffs. Apart from Kansas, the #17 driver didn’t end under the High 20 in any of the playoff races up to now. It takes one good day to qualify for the Championship 4 race. 

With or with out Ryan Blaney’s disqualification, Chris Buescher has undoubtedly confirmed he can manufacture that day for himself and RFK Racing this Sunday.

Learn Extra: Brad Keselowski’s Superstar Shockingly Warns RFK Racing Boss