Team: No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang
Crew Chief: Luke Lambert
Twitter: @17RoushTeam, @RoushFenway and @Chris_Buescher
Race Format: 400 miles, 267 laps, Stage Lengths: 80-80-107
Super Start Batteries 400 Presented by O-Reilly Auto Parts – Thursday, July 23 at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
ADVANCE NOTES
Thursday Night Race on Deck in Kansas
· Just four days after a 500-mile race in Texas, the NASCAR Cup Series stays west for a rare Thursday night event for 400 miles under the lights at Kansas Speedway.
· The first Kansas race was originally scheduled for late May in its typical spring slot, but was moved to summer following scheduling implications from COVID-19. The NCS race will be the first of five races at the 1.5-mile track across the weekend, with the Truck Series set for a doubleheader, and the Xfinity and ARCA Series also on tap.
· The lineup for Sunday’s race will again be determined by a random draw based on teams’ order in owners’ points. Buescher and the No. 17 team are 22nd in points and will draw for a starting spot in the 13-24 group.
· Four weeks of NASCAR action were completed prior to the COVID-19 hiatus with races at Atlanta, Homestead, Texas, Bristol, Richmond, Talladega, Dover and Martinsville postponed.
Buescher Historically at Kansas Speedway
· Buescher makes his ninth Cup start at Kansas on Thursday, a track where he has an average finish of 17.8 with two top-10 results.
· Buescher’s best result of sixth came back in the 2017 fall race. Most recently, he crossed the line 10th last spring and followed that with a 13th-place run in the fall.
· He also has three Xfinity Series starts at the 1.5-mile track, with a best finish of sixth in 2015 in the No. 60 entry for Jack Roush.
Luke Lambert at Kansas Speedway
· Lambert will call his 15th Cup race at Kansas on Thursday, where he has an average finish of 18.9 with two top 10s.
· Both top-10 results came with Ryan Newman in 2014 (sixth) and 2016 (seventh), in a stretch where Newman finished no worse than 12th in six-straight events from 2013-16.
· Most recently, Lambert let Daniel Hemric to the pole in last fall’s event, adding to his impressive 14.6 average starting position.
· Lambert also called one Xfinity event with Elliott Sadler in 2012, finishing fourth after starting seventh.
QUOTE WORTHY
Buescher on racing at Kansas:
“We’re looking for a big rebound Thursday after a promising start to our day in Texas. Our goal has been to continue to build each week, and we have shown that in spots, so we are looking forward to putting it all together come Thursday. Kansas is a really fast track that I’ve run better at in the past couple events, so looking forward to the challenge in our Fifth Third Ford.”
Last Time Out
Buescher was on pace for a solid finish in Sunday’s race at Texas, earning stage points in the first segment, before becoming the victim of a multi-car incident. Despite the damage, Buescher and the No. 17 team fought in the closing laps to finish 19th.
Where They Rank
Buescher is 20th in driver points through 18 events.
On the Car
Fifth Third Bank makes its fourth appearance aboard Buescher’s No. 17 Ford Thursday in Kansas.
About Fifth Third Bank
Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the indirect parent company of Fifth Third Bank, National Association, a federally chartered institution. As of March 31, 2020, Fifth Third had $185 billion in assets and operated 1,123 full-service banking centers and 2,464 ATMs with Fifth Third branding in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina. In total, Fifth Third provides its customers with access to approximately 53,000 fee-free ATMs across the United States. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending and Wealth & Asset Management. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of March 31, 2020, had $374 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $42 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations through its Trust and Registered Investment Advisory businesses. Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Fifth Third’s common stock is traded on the Nasdaq® Global Select Market under the symbol “FITB.” Fifth Third Bank was established in 1858. Deposit and Credit products are offered by Fifth Third Bank, National Association. Member FDIC.
