DARLINGTON, SC – May 22, 2020 – The NASCAR Xfinity Series got back to racing in a big way last night. Chase Briscoe left everything on the track; he would not be denied his second Xfinity win of the season and first at Darlington Raceway. Briscoe also brought home the second win of the week for Stewart-Haas Racing.
“Congratulations to Chase, Richard, Tony, Gene, and the No. 98 crew,” said Doug Yates, President and CEO of Roush Yates Engines. “I am so proud of this wheelman and pray for his family during this difficult time. This has been a special week for our sport, and we are very fortunate to have the leadership of Ford Performance, great teams, fans, and our partners.”
After a rain delay moved the restart of the Xfinity series to later in the day, developing the right game plan proved to be critical, with no practice nor qualifying, the Ford drivers strapped in for their first race in over two months. The Ford Performance teammates proved they had done their homework, competing in the top-10 for most of the race.
It all came down to the last restart of the race. Briscoe and Austin Cindric lined up in the outside lane, first and fourth, respectively. Cindric gave Briscoe a good push at the restart and after a brief battle with Justin Allgaier, Briscoe was able to clear the field and take the lead. But veteran driver, Kyle Busch would work to reel Briscoe in over the course of the last six laps. Briscoe drove with grit and true determination to defend the lead, as he and Busch traded paint on the final two laps of the race. Coming off the final corner, Briscoe squeezed his No. 98 Ford Mustang between Busch and the wall and drag raced Busch to take the checkered flag.
“This has been the hardest week I’ve ever had to deal with, and God is so good,” commented Briscoe in his victory interview. “Even when I took the lead with 50 to go, I was crying inside the race car and just emotionally I wasn’t there at all. There’s nothing else to say other than God is just so glorious. Obviously, I’m happy to get HighPoint.com and Ford Performance Racing School in victory lane, but this is more than a race win. This is the biggest day of my life after the toughest day in my life, and to be able to beat the best there is so satisfying.”
Cindric, Team Penske’s No. 22 driver, also drove a great race and finished P4. Briscoe is on top of the driver’s leader board with Cindric in third.
The Cup series capped off their two-race stint at Darlington Wednesday night with Clint Bowyer leading a race-high 71 laps while winning Stage 1 and Stage 2. Although the race was cut short due to rain, the Ford Mustangs finished strong with five Fords in the top-10: Kevin Harvick (P3), Brad Keselowski (P4), Joey Logano (P6), Aric Almirola (P7), and Matt DiBenedetto (P9).
Harvick remains the points leader after Darlington with a 34-point advantage over second place Logano.
NASCAR heads to Charlotte, NC for the historic Coca Cola 600 on Sunday and the Xfinity series will take center stage on Memorial Day in the Alsco 300. Reference the full 2020 schedule on Roushyates.com.
27 CHAMPIONSHIPS – 384 WINS – 357 POLES!
About Roush Yates Engines
Roush Yates Engines is a leading-edge engine development company based in Mooresville, NC consisting of two state-of-the-art facilities – Roush Yates Engines and Roush Yates Manufacturing Solutions, a world class ISO 9001 / AS9100 certified CNC manufacturing facility. The company’s core business includes designing, building and testing purpose-built race engines.
Ford Performance in partnership with Roush Yates Engines is the exclusive engine builder of the NASCAR FR9 Ford V8 engine and Ford Mustang 5.2L V8 engine, used in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series.
With an unparalleled culture of winning and steeped in rich racing history, Roush Yates Engines continues to follow the company’s vision to lead performance engine innovation and staying true to the company’s mission, provide race winning engines through demonstrated power and performance.
3 Series – 22 Teams – 81 Races
