Chris Buescher captures first victory when fog stops race at Pocono
Aug. 1, 2016
By Reid Spencer
NASCAR Wire Service
LONG POND, Pa. – Chris Buescher sat in his car on pit road, dreaming of the possibilities.
NASCAR
had just red-flagged Monday’s rain-delayed Pennsylvania 400 when a
heavy fog settled over Pocono Raceway after 138 of a scheduled 160 laps,
and Buescher was the unlikely
race leader.
“I’m thinking of every kind of rain dance I can,” Buescher said on his radio.
The mental rain dance worked.
When
NASCAR ended the stoppage by calling the race because of weather,
Buescher had his first victory as a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver, and
Front Row Motorsports had its
first win since David Ragan took the checkered flag at Talladega
Superspeedway 118 races ago.
Buescher
took the top spot by staying out on the track, outlasting faster cars
that had pitted behind him. Brad Keselowski finished second, followed by
Regan Smith, whose team
made the same strategic call that propelled Buescher to the unlikely
victory.
Kevin Harvick ran fourth, followed by Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Tony Stewart.
Even
though the early call of the race deprived Stewart of a chance to win,
he wished the best for Buescher during the red-flag period.
“He’s
a good kid and an XFINITY champion (2015),” Stewart said during the
red-flag period. “It doesn’t matter how you get your first win. You just
want to get your first win.
I hope it works out for him right now.”
For Buescher, the long, tense wait for NASCAR to call the event was well worth it.
"It
was stressful,” said Buescher, who lost a lap because of a pit road
speeding penalty on Lap 94 and regained it as the highest-scored lapped
car under caution on Lap 109.
“I tried not to get my hopes up because I know how these things can
play out. Mother Nature can be really nice sometimes and really mean.
“If that sun would have come out, it would have changed our whole day."
With
rain in the area, Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon were among six drivers
who stayed on the track under caution on Lap 67, and when the race went
green on Lap 73, Larson streaked
into the lead with Dillon in pursuit.
With
a strong run off Turn 3, Dillon inched ahead at the start/finish line
on Lap 78, but Larson regained the top spot into Turn 1. Three laps
later, Dillon moved to the inside
of Larson in Turn 3, and their Chevrolets collided side-to-side.
Logano,
who had given the two frontrunners a wide berth, slipped to the inside
and into the lead, passing both cars as they slid wide through the
corner.
When
NASCAR called the fourth caution of the day on Lap 85, Logano stayed
out under the yellow and brought the field to green on Lap 92.
Logano
held the top spot until pole winner Martin Truex Jr. pounded the
outside wall for the third time on Lap 100 to bring out the fifth
caution. At that point, the field inverted,
with Logano and Kevin Harvick pitting from the first and second
positions, respectively.
That handed the lead back to Larson, who had pitted under yellow on Lap 86, along with Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch and Dillon.
On
Lap 106, Logano’s winning chances evaporated when Chase Eliott’s
Chevrolet broke loose in the Tunnel Turn (turn 2) and knocked Logano’s
No. 22 Ford into the outside wall.
Elliott’s car also took extensive damage when it nosed into the inside
wall.
But
Buescher inherited the lead during a cycle of green-flag pit stops that
started on Lap 124 and was running up front when NASCAR called the
seventh caution on Lap 133 because
of lack of visibility.
Buescher
can earn a spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup if he finishes
the 26-race regular season in 30th place or higher in the series
standings. Buescher currently
is six points behind 30th-place Ragan, who now drives for BK Racing.
Buescher
is the first Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate to win a Sprint Cup
race since Logano accomplished the feat in 2009. Coincidentally,
Logano’s victory came in a rain-shortened
race at New Hampshire.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race - Pennsylvania 400
Pocono Raceway
Long Pond, Pennsylvania
Monday, August 01, 2016
1. (22) Chris Buescher #, Ford, 138.
2. (7) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 138.
3. (30) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 138.
4. (17) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 138.
5. (6) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 138.
6. (11) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 138.
7. (4) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 138.
8. (2) Carl Edwards, Toyota, 138.
9. (16) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 138.
10. (15) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 138.
11. (18) * Ryan Blaney #, Ford, 138.
12. (5) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 138.
13. (12) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 138.
14. (13) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 138.
15. (23) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 138.
16. (21) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 138.
17. (9) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 138.
18. (14) Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Ford, 138.
19. (31) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 138.
20. (19) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 138.
21. (20) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 138.
22. (26) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 138.
23. (29) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 138.
24. (35) Brian Scott #, Ford, 138.
25. (25) Greg Biffle, Ford, 138.
26. (28) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 138.
27. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 138.
28. (34) Matt DiBenedetto, Toyota, 138.
29. (39) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 137.
30. (32) Landon Cassill, Ford, 137.
31. (36) * Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 137.
32. (33) David Ragan, Toyota, 135.
33. (8) Chase Elliott #, Chevrolet, 134.
34. (38) * Josh Wise, Chevrolet, 132.
35. (3) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 119.
36. (37) Jeb Burton(i), Ford, 117.
37. (10) Joey Logano, Ford, 115.
38. (1) Martin Truex Jr, Toyota, Accident, 82.
39. (27) Aric Almirola, Ford, Accident, 66.
40. (40) * Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, Engine, 29.
Average Speed of Race Winner: 127.581 mph.
Time of Race: 02 Hrs, 42 Mins, 15 Secs. Margin of Victory: Caution.
Caution Flags: 7 for 31 laps.
Lead Changes: 19 among 11 drivers.
Lap
Leaders: M. Truex Jr 1-16; B. Keselowski 17-18; G. Biffle 19-32; J.
Logano 33-50; K. Harvick 51; J. Logano 52; A. Dillon 53; R. Newman 54;
B. Keselowski 55-60; K. Harvick
61-66; K. Larson 67-77; A. Dillon 78; K. Larson 79-80; J. Logano 81-99;
K. Larson 100-108; Kyle Busch 109; K. Larson 110-124; A. Dillon 125; A.
Allmendinger 126; C. Buescher # 127-138.
Leaders
Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): J. Logano 3 times for 38 laps;
K. Larson 4 times for 37 laps; M. Truex Jr 1 time for 16 laps; G.
Biffle 1 time for 14 laps; C.
Buescher # 1 time for 12 laps; B. Keselowski 2 times for 8 laps; K.
Harvick 2 times for 7 laps; A. Dillon 3 times for 3 laps; R. Newman 1
time for 1 lap; Kyle Busch 1 time for 1 lap; A. Allmendinger 1 time for 1
lap.
Top
16 in Points: K. Harvick - 709; B. Keselowski - 687; Kurt Busch - 658;
Kyle Busch - 634; C. Edwards - 626; J. Logano - 612; J. Johnson - 577;
M. Truex Jr - 577; D. Hamlin
- 576; M. Kenseth - 569; A. Dillon - 549; R. Newman - 537; C. Elliott #
- 533; J. Mcmurray - 517; K. Larson - 508; K. Kahne - 488.
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