NASCAR’s Chris Buescher supports Bubba Wallace, talks Pocono and fans returning to TMS
Chris Buescher had a sense of relief when it was determined that fellow NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace was not the victim of a hate crime at Talladega Superspeedway last weekend.
The FBI determined that a pull rope fashioned like a noose had been on the garage door since as early as October.
“We should be really happy there was no hate crime and that it was a misunderstanding,” said Buescher, the North Texas native who drives the No. 17 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing.
However, Buescher still feels the sport had an incredible moment when drivers and crew members pushed Wallace’s car to the front of the field before the race. It was a sign of unity in a sport that is trying to become more diverse and broaden its fan base.
“It was really awesome to see everybody come together and try to show support, try to make sure that everybody knows they’re welcomed and can feel comfortable at our race tracks,” Buescher said. “What a big moment for our sport. We’ll continue to work on it going forward and make sure that everybody who wants to come to a race can.”
As for the race itself, Buescher had a successful day in finishing sixth. It was his best finish of the season since a third-place run at the season-opening Daytona 500.
Buescher is hoping to carry that momentum into this weekend’s double-header event at Pennsylvania’s Pocono Raceway. This is the track where Buescher earned his first — and so far only — Cup victory in 2016, driving for Front Row Motorsports.
“I do like the track and enjoy heading up there,” said Buescher, who finished 14th and 16th in the two races at Pocono last year.
“It’s a place where we can go make little changes and hopefully get some really big results,” he said. “Our momentum has been pretty good from the past several weeks, not just Talladega, so that also helps as well. We’re learning a lot that I feel like is going to help us in the next handful of races as we try to work toward getting back into the playoffs and making sure we’re there when it counts.”
Buescher is also looking forward to returning to Texas next month. The O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 has been scheduled for July 19 at TMS and fans will be allowed to attend.
That’s something that excites Buescher more than anything. Yes, it’s his hometown track, but seeing more fans in the stands is something that will be a welcome sight.
“A lot of drivers, from what I understand, have said not having fans has not made that big of difference,” Buescher said. “I’ve never been able to agree with that. It’s so much different. The energy level at our race track when we don’t have our fans there to be around it and to cheer on and tailgate and have that energy built up … having fans back is an awesome step in the right direction for us. It makes us excited that we know it’s getting back to a little bit more normal in our lives. It’s not completely that way, but it’s a step in the right direction.”
This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 3:00 PM.
