Team: No. 17 SunnyD Ford Mustang
Crew Chief: Luke Lambert
Twitter: @17RoushTeam, @RoushFenway and @Chris_Buescher
Race Format: 400.5 miles, 267 laps, Stage Lengths: 80-80-107
South Point 400 – Sunday, Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
ADVANCE NOTES
Vegas Next Stop for NASCAR Playoffs
· For the first time since the return to racing, NASCAR heads west as Las Vegas Motor Speedway plays host to the fourth race of the NASCAR Playoffs, and first in the Round of 12. All three National series will be at the 1.5-mile track this weekend as part of their respective playoff schedules.
· Following action in Vegas, the series heads to the high banks of Talladega Superspeedway (Oct. 4) followed by the ROVAL at Charlotte Motor Speedway (Oct. 11) to cap the Round of 12.
· The starting lineup will once again be set by three competition-based performance metrics, rewarding both season-long and single-race performance. The lineup will be announced later this week prior to Saturday night’s event.
· 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 before the schedule later picked back up in mid-May.
Buescher Historically at Las Vegas
· Buescher makes his eighth Cup start at Las Vegas on Sunday, where he carries an average finish of 18.4. Most recently, Buescher ran 14th in the second race of the 2020 season, his best career result at the 1.5-mile track.
· Outside of the 14th-place run, Buescher had a pair of 15th-place runs in the 2018 season.
· Buescher had two Xfinity starts at Vegas with a best finish of ninth in 2014 under Scott Graves. A year later the duo went on to finish 14th in the 2015 race.
Luke Lambert Historically at Las Vegas
· Lambert will call his 11th Cup race from Las Vegas this weekend. In 10 prior starts, he has a best finish of third with Newman in 2015.
· Lambert has an average finish of 14th with two additional top-10s – seventh in 2014 and ninth in the 2018 fall race.
· He and Daniel Hemric posted two top-10 qualifying efforts in the 2019 races, lining up fifth last spring and sixth in the fall.
· Lambert called one Xfinity Series race for Elliott Sadler at Vegas back in 2012, finishing third after starting on the pole.
QUOTE WORTHY
Buescher on racing at Vegas:
“I’m excited to get back to Vegas, where in the spring we had a solid top-15 run. We’re coming off a strong top-10 a week ago in Bristol, so looking to string together a satisfactory ending to our season. Excited to have SunnyD back on the car, and look forward to putting on a good show in the #SunnyDouble this weekend and next.
Last Time Out
Buescher surged late in Saturday night’s race from Bristol to finish eighth, his seventh top-10 of the season.
Where They Rank
Buescher is 20th in driver standings through 29 events.
On the Car
Iconic brand and thirst-quenching favorite SunnyD returns to the No. 17 machine this weekend at Las Vegas. The #SUNNYDouble race weekends mark the third time in NASCAR Cup Series history that the No. 17 SUNNYD Ford will hit the track in back-to-back races. Roush Fenway Racing and SUNNYD will partner to give fans an exclusive content shared across the Roush Fenway and SUNNYD Racing Facebook, Twitter and Instagram platform for two weeks of SUNNYDynamic action.
During #SUNNYDouble race week, fans will have the opportunity to win a personalized, virtual signed hero card, a virtual photo with Buescher and their very own personalized SUNNYD bottle. Fans will also have the chance to win spectacular SUNNYD giveaways like lanyards, t-shirts, hats, laptop stickers and more.
Supporting Childhood and Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
September is childhood and ovarian cancer awareness month. In an effort to create awareness, the Martin Truex Jr., Foundation has partnered with the NASCAR Foundation to launch the Nominate a Cancer Hero program for this weekend’s race. Proceeds from the program will support the children’s emergency department in Huntersville, N.C., as well as therapies for women and children undergoing cancer treatments and child life services across the racing communities.
The name of a Cancer Hero will ride along the name rail on the cars of drivers who participated in the campaign. Beatrice Anderson, nominated by Tyler Anderson, will ride along with Buescher on the SunnyD Ford.
About SunnyD
The iconic SunnyD® brand is owned by Harvest Hill Holdings, a Brynwood Partners owned beverage company. The 54-year-old SunnyD® brand is a leading chilled juice drink in the U.S. In addition to the SunnyD® brand, the company markets the Juicy Juice®, Little HUG®, and Daily’s® beverage brands. Harvest Hill’s products are widely distributed through leading retailers in the U.S. and Canada.
