Buescher Battles His Way to 13th Place at Martinsville

After battling hard inside the top-15 for much of the race, Chris Buescher drove his No. 17 Fastenal Ford to a solid 13th-place finish under the lights Wednesday night at Martinsville Speedway.

After rolling off the grid 24th, Buescher and the No. 17 team made quick work driving through the field. By the competition caution at lap 60, the team was running 14thand elected to pit for an air pressure adjustment, four tires and fuel. A phenomenal pit stop enabled Buescher to restart 12th; where he ultimately finished the stage after one more caution and another restart.

At the stage break, Buescher reported that his car fired off great and was turning better. The No. 17 team got to work, pitting with the stage caution for a wedge adjustment, four tires and fuel. After restarting 12th, Buescher took the green-white-checkered flag in 11th after a caution-free stage two.

The Prosper, Texas native visited pit road with no negative reports of his Fastenal Ford machine. The team pitted for an air pressure adjustment, tires, fuel and got back to work, restarting 10th. Buescher stayed within the top-10 for much of the stage, trading positions from ninth to 10th with teammate Ryan Newman right behind him. When the caution flag waved at lap 325, the driver was running 13th. Battling a tight handling Ford, Buescher asked for a track bar adjustment. The team obliged and got back on track to restart 13th at lap 398. The race went green for another 67 laps, where Buescher remained in the top-10. When the caution flag waved at lap 398, the team pitted for fuel, tires and a small adjustment. After restarting 10th, the team fought hard to keep track position, ultimately taking the checkered flag 13th.

Buescher and the No. 17 team return to action on Sunday, June 14 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Race coverage begins at 3:30 p.m. EST on Fox, MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.

RFR PR