Larson has struggled through a sophomore slump this season in the Sprint Cup Series and his most recent NASCAR win came in May 2014 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Larson led a race-high 118 of 200 laps. He led Chase Elliott by 18 points and Ty Dillon by 22, and all he had to do was finish in 13th place or better to clinch the title.
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“I was a little nervous”, Buescher admitted after becoming the 26th different driver to win the second-tier championship honours, and the second from Texas after 1991 victor Bobby Labonte. “It’s also neat to say that I was able to win a race on his final weekend of racing. A lot of learning processes and we learned a bunch of things”, he said. I didn’t get that one. “All things considered that was exactly what we needed to do and we knew that and knew we were capable of doing it”, Buescher said.
“I’m glad we could pull it off for all the people that were on board all year, AdvoCare, Roush Performance, Cheez-It and all the fans”. “We knew if we could be in the “Lucky Dog” situation … we were basically going to be on even ground (with our competitors)”.
Larson said of the Homestead track: “No track suits me better”. I have to thank my parents so much for the opportunity to be here and leave home and do this.
“Our Fastenal Mustang had good speed in it, but we just had to be careful out there”, Buescher said. If we can do that, obviously the points will fall wherever they will and we’ll be just fine.
Keeping his desire to race for victories in check, however, has been a hard proposition for the young champion.
“On that restart, I told myself not to spin the tires, but then I got too hesitant”, Larson said, and that led to a slow start. Only two other drivers have driven more than 10 races in a season, won a race and never finished inside the top 10. “But it’s important. This is what we’ve been fighting for since February and Daytona”. “It’s a huge accomplishment for our team”.
Dillon appeared to have the strongest auto during the race’s late stages, but when he bumped the wall with five laps left, Larson blew past him to win.
“This is definitely my favorite race track”, the victor said. “I think our sport belongs in every part of the market in America and I think this is a big step”. I noticed it earlier on in the year. “I hate points racing”. So I think Chris is going to be good. He’s smart. He doesn’t tear up stuff.
Gordon (Hendrick Motorsports) is one of four drivers that will be battling for the series title, along with defending series champion Kevin Harvick (Stewart-Haas Racing), Kyle Busch (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Martin Truex Jr. “I feel like we’ll have something….” “He has done a fantastic job both on and off the track and I know ARRIS and Toyota are extremely excited to have him earn this honor”. We don’t have everything planned out at the moment.
Buescher won the Xfinity Series title Saturday, helping offset the sting of an unsatisfying season in Sprint Cup for Roush Fenway Racing. What’s unknown is how many. “He will be involved in a Cup vehicle to a few extent, but whether it’s a part-time program or a full program, we’re still in the midst of finalizing the conditions”.
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“We’ve got a number of possibilities, but we’re not ready to announce that today”.
