Team: No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang
Crew Chief: Luke Lambert
Twitter: @17RoushTeam, @RoushFenway and @Chris_Buescher
Race Format: 500 laps, 263 miles, Stage Lengths: 130-130-240
Xfinity 500 – Sunday, Nov. 1 at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
ADVANCE NOTES
Quick Turnaround to Martinsville for Sunday Cup Race
· Just four days removed from a rare Wednesday night finish after a long weather-delayed race in Texas, the NASCAR Cup Series will battle once again for 500 miles at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, with just two races left in the 2020 campaign.
· Sunday’s starting lineup will be set by three competition-based metrics, rewarding both season-long and single-race performance, and will be announced later in the week.
· 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 Martinsville
· Buescher will make his 11th Cup start at Martinsville on Sunday, where he has an average finish of 19.8. He’s coming off a 13th-place run at ‘The Paperclip’ this summer, which marked his second-straight top-15 at the track, and third in the last four events.
· Buescher’s best result at Martinsville came back in 2017, where he finished 11th after starting 33rd. Dating back two-straight fall events, Buescher has finishes of 13th and 12th.
Luke Lambert Historically at Martinsville
· Lambert will be atop the box for his 17th career Cup start at Martinsville, a track he has an average finish of 14th, second best of any track on the circuit for him.
· Lambert is coming off a 13th-place run with Buescher in the summer. Lambert’s best result came back in 2014, finishing third with Ryan Newman that fall. He led Jeff Burton to a sixth-place finish in his first-ever Cup race at the track in 2011, and tallied four additional top-10s with Newman.
QUOTE WORTHY
Buescher on racing at Martinsville:
“As someone who loves short-track racing, I’m ready to get back to Martinsville this weekend. We put together a solid day there this summer, and it’s a place where I’ve had some success at as of late. We’re glad to have Fifth Third Bank back on board our Ford Mustang, and look forward to putting together a solid run in what should be an entertaining race come Sunday.”
Last Time Out
Buescher unfortunately sustained major rear-end damage early in the going on Sunday putting him multiple laps down, before going on to finish 34th Wednesday night in the completion at Texas.
Where They Rank
Buescher is 21st in driver standings through 34 events.
On the Car
Fifth Third Bank returns to Buescher’s No. 17 machine this weekend in Martinsville. Triangle Services, a leading North American provider of Support Services for Facilities Management, Aviation and Airlines, Print and Production, and Mobility across North America, will also appear on the decklid of the No. 17 Ford Mustang as a participant in the Fueled by Fifth Third program.
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 June 30, 2020, Fifth Third had $203 billion in assets and operated 1,122 full-service banking centers and 2,456 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 June 30, 2020, had $405 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $49 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.
