It was overtime in the Cup playoff race at Watkins Glen when Shane Van Gisbergen put the bumper to Chris Buescher to snatch away the race lead. He held a slim advantage on the final lap, but touched the Armco on entry to the bus stop chicane. This unsettled his No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet, allowing Buescher to close in on him with the No. 17 RFK Racing Ford.
Buescher wasn’t about to waste the opportunity, shoving his nose to the inside as SVG pinched him. The two drivers made significant contact into the carousel and Buescher surged ahead. Van Gisbergen closed back in for one last dive into the final corner, but slid sideways and nearly crashed. He maintained control, but had to settle for second as Buescher captured the checkered flag.
“Our long-run speed was just phenomenal,” said a grinning Buescher after the race. “Thought we lost it there on the last one. That was the spot where he was better than us and he missed it. Tried to cross-over, he went to cut, but just hard racing there. Just such an awesome finish. To get a win is good. We came here to be spoilers and we’re gonna do that.”
He added that it “certainly” alleviates some of the frustration with missing the playoffs, calling it a “huge” win for himself and the team. This is Buescher’s sixth career win in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Carson Hocevar finished third in a career-best finish, pole-sitter Ross Chastain was fourth, and Zane Smith finished fifth. Chase Briscoe, Michael McDowell, Corey LaJoie, Ryan Preece, and Austin Cindric rounded out the top-ten.
Race rundown
The race started in chaos with a multi-car crash on the opening lap, collecting several drivers in the bus stop chicane. Among those with damage were playoff drivers Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, and Brad Keselowski. It started when Corey LaJoie got into the side of Kyle Busch, sending him spinning. Blaney was unable to continue, finishing last.
Chastain dominated from pole position, leading over half the race, but he was among those who chose to pit early while playoff drivers stayed out for valuable points. Martin Truex Jr., who came into this race 19 points below the cut-line, won the opening stage.
A similar story appeared to be unfolding in the second stage, but when Daniel Suarez spun into the gravel, it completely changed the strategy for several drivers. Chastain and Van Gisbergen were unable to get to pit road before the yellow flag and were forced to stay out until the stage break, choosing to run long on older tires instead of throwing away their track position. As they stretched the fuel and the tires, Chris Buescher was able to pass both drivers.
Chris Buescher, RFK Racing, BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang
Photo by: John Harrelson / NKP / Motorsport Images
Originally, it seemed like Buescher would cruise to the win with a several second advantage, but a caution for the shredded remains of Harrison Burton’s left-rear tire set up a sprint the finish. While the leaders kept it clean, Brad Keselowski crashed in the esses. William Byron ended up going airborne before landing on top of Keselowski’s car. Somehow, the cars got disconnected and continued rolling, but it was not the end of the carnage. The race went into overtime, which led to another crash entering the esses. Truex, Busch, Tyler Reddick, and Chase Elliott were just some of the drivers involved.
What followed was the final restart of the race where Buescher and Van Gisbergen battled back-and-forth for the victory.
Leaving Watkins Glen, the following drivers will enter the Round of 16 elimination race at Bristol below the cut-line: Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., and Harrison Burton.