On Sunday at Watkins Glen International, Chris Buescher turned the tables on a road-racing specialist.
A non-playoff competitor, Buescher made a dramatic last-lap pass of road-course ace Shane van Gisbergen after giving up the lead on the final restart and held on to win the NASCAR Cup Series’ Go Bowling at the Glen in overtime in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
In the second race of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs and one of two postseason road configurations, Buescher’s No. 17 RFK Ford led as the race went to extra laps, but van Gisbergen nudged by in Turn 1.
However, Buescher rallied, slid underneath the New Zealand SuperCars champion in the carousel, made slight contact and won for the first time in 2024 by 0.979 seconds, his first road-course win in 36 starts.
The Prosper, Texas, product said he just wanted to stay with the Down Under hotshoe after being passed on the restart.
“I thought we lost it there in that last (restart),” Buescher said after leading 19 laps on his way to his sixth career victory. “(The carousel) was the spot he was better than us, and he missed it. … Just hard racing there. We came here to be spoiler, and we’re going to do that.”
A smiling van Gisbergen was upset with himself after failing to win for a second time in his 10th career Cup start.
“Driver error,” van Gisbergen said. “I knew Chris was really going to send it and push me if he could get there. I got a little loose and hit the inside wall. …
“I’m gutted. … I’m pretty angry at myself.”
Carson Hocevar, Ross Chastain and Zane Smith completed the top five. Corey LaJoie was eighth, putting all three Spire Motorsports Chevrolets in the top 10.
Competing in NASCAR for the first time since 2014, two-time Cup race winner Juan Pablo Montoya finished 32nd.
In all, 11 of the 16 playoff drivers had some difficulties in the 90-lap race.
Shortly after polesitter Chastain led them to green, an eight-car crash ensued halfway through the first lap when LaJoie turned Kyle Busch’s No. 8 and put him sideways in traffic. Denny Hamlin tagged Busch’s Chevrolet, and Ryan Blaney’s No. 12 Ford hit the cars driven by Brad Keselowski and John Hunter Nemechek.
Hamlin and Blaney (broken steering column) received the most damage, with the reigning Cup champion’s car being towed back to the garage and retired. Blaney finished last.
Most of the field pitted as the 20-lap Stage 1 neared its end, and Martin Truex Jr. took the top spot and gained all 10 bonus points. Alex Bowman and Chase Briscoe followed, respectively.
Chastain led again when it went back to green, but van Gisbergen’s No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet hounded the No. 1 in the segment. At the end, playoff contender Daniel Suarez, Chastain’s teammate, looped his No. 99 in Turn 6 and got stuck in the gravel with three laps left.
The day worsened for Hamlin on Lap 47 when the Joe Gibbs Racing driver went three-wide with Keselowski and Kyle Larson. Hamlin’s Toyota smacked the guardrail hard and created the fourth caution.
Debris sprayed from Harrison Burton’s blown tire with 10 laps to go, and the final caution flew when Keselowski and William Byron crashed hard with seven to go.
— Field Level Media
