Matt DiBenedetto and the No. 21 Quick Lane team find themselves in a must-win Playoff situation heading into next Saturday’s race at Bristol Motor Speedway after a 17th-place finish at Richmond Raceway.

DiBenedetto started Saturday’s 400-lapper at Richmond from 16th place but struggled early with the handling on his Quick Lane Mustang.

He finished 17th in the first Stage and 19th in the second, but he lost a lap when he came just a few laps shy of making a two-pit-stop strategy work in his favor in the second stage.

Still, DiBenedetto was able to run in the free pass spot for a long stretch at the start of the third and final segment of the race.

Unfortunately, the lack of caution flags took away any opportunity to rejoin the lead lap, and he wound up finishing outside the top 15.

There were only three yellow flags all night, one for the competition caution and two for stage breaks.

So, Benedetto and the Quick Lane team head to Bristol 25 points below the Playoff cutline. The bottom four drivers in the standings after Bristol will be eliminated from title contention, so the only plausible way for DiBenedetto, 15th in the standings, to make the Round of 12 would be to win at Bristol since a win in any round guarantees an advancement to the next round.

DiBenedetto, who was racing at Richmond for the first time since joining the Quick Lane team, said the lack of practice there put him and the team at a disadvantage.

“No practice really bit us,” he said, adding that his Greg Erwin-led crew was able to tune the No. 21 Mustang and make it competitive after a slow start. “We made a fair amount of adjustments and got it driving, not perfect, but OK.

“We rode in the lucky dog spot for the longest time but couldn’t ever get a caution. That trapped us behind the Eight Ball, and we couldn’t get the finish we deserved.”

DiBenedetto said that while winning at Bristol will be a tall order, he believes he and his team are capable of pulling it off.

“We have good race cars, and if we get it just right we have a shot at it,” he said.

About Motorcraft:

Motorcraft offers a complete line of replacement parts that are recommended by Ford Motor Company. From routine maintenance to underhood repairs, Motorcraft parts offer value with high quality and the right fit at competitive prices. Motorcraft parts are available nationwide at Ford and Lincoln Dealers, independent distributors and automotive parts retailers, and are backed by the Service Parts Limited Warranty of Ford Motor Company. For more information, visit www.motorcraft.com.

About Omnicraft:

Omnicraft is part of the Ford lineup of parts brands: Ford Parts, Motorcraft and Omnicraft. Omnicraft is the exclusive non-Ford/Lincoln parts brand of premium aftermarket parts. With over a century of parts heritage to build upon, Omnicraft provides excellent quality and fit and is a preferred choice of professional automotive technicians. To find out more about Omnicraft, visit www.omnicraftautoparts.com or contact your local Ford or Lincoln Dealership.

About Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center

Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center offers extraordinary service for routine vehicle maintenance including tire repair and replacement with a Low Tire Price Guarantee and a full menu of automotive services including oil and filter, brakes, alignments, batteries, and shocks and struts on all vehicle makes and models. Service is performed by certified technicians at more than 1,000 locations worldwide while you wait, and no appointment is necessary. For more information about Quick Lane, please visit www.quicklane.com.

About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is a global company based in Dearborn, Michigan. The company designs, manufactures, markets and services a full line of Ford cars, trucks, SUVs, electrified vehicles and Lincoln luxury vehicles, provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company and is pursuing leadership positions in electrification, autonomous vehicles and mobility solutions. Ford employs approximately 200,000 people worldwide. For more information regarding Ford, its products and Ford Motor Credit Company, please visit www.corporate.ford.com.

Wood Brothers Racing

Wood Brothers Racing was formed in 1950 in Stuart, Va., by Hall of Famer Glen Wood. Wood Brothers Racing is the oldest active team and one of the winningest teams in NASCAR history. Since its founding, the team won 99 races (including at least one race in every decade for the last seven decades) and 120 poles in NASCAR’s top-tier series. Fielding only Ford products for its entire history, the Wood Brothers own the longest association of any motorsports team with a single manufacturer. Glen’s brother, Leonard, is known for inventing the modern pit stop. The team currently runs the Ford Mustang driven by Matt DiBenedetto in the famous No. 21 racer.

Austin Dillon and the Dow NORKOOL Chevrolet Team Display Dominance at Richmond Raceway By Leading Laps, Earning Stage Points and Top-Five Finish

Finish: 4th
Start: 3rd
Points: 6th

“I feel like I gave one away tonight. Our Dow NORKOOL Chevrolet was so fast. We had a massive day for stage points, which is going to help us out big picture-wise. We had a speeding penalty in Stage 1, and to come from the back to the front in that Stage just shows how fast our Chevy was tonight. This No. 3 team is on fire right now and showing up when it matters. I have a line at Richmond, and it has been working for me. I run a little lower on the straightaway, and it gives me good forward drive. I saw some other drivers start picking it up and laying the rubber down on that line. It might have hurt us a little bit at the end of the race, but the biggest thing is when we came to pit road for our second green-flag stop in Stage 3, we were trying to bring everybody down. The No. 1 car was in my mirror on tires. I overdrove that entry just a little bit thinking that I needed to avoid getting rear-ended, and then it was like ‘Oh no, I’m going to hit the red box’ so I had to make another lap around the track. That cost us three seconds. It probably killed our deal, but it was still early, so who knows. It was a lot of fun out here tonight, and I think we had the best car tonight, so thanks to Justin Alexander and everyone at RCR and ECR for giving us a solid Chevy tonight. We’re headed to Bristol Motor Speedway in a good spot, and it’s exciting to know we still have eight more chances to try and get another win. Our confidence level for Bristol is pretty high.” -Austin Dillon

Tyler Reddick and No. 8 Cat Rental Store Team Capitalize on Data to Adapt and Secure 11th-Place Finish at Richmond

Finish: 11th
Start: 22nd
Points: 19th

“I think Richmond Raceway is one the most challenging tracks on the circuit, but my No. 8 Cat Rental Store team did a great job tonight helping me find my rhythm and build a strong run out there with our Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. Not having any practice here for my first Cup start, it took me a little bit of time in the first Stage to figure out the best way to get around here with the balance I had in our car. My whole team did a good job of analyzing the SMT data available to us in real-time and relaying to my spotter, Derek Kneeland, on what I needed to be doing differently on track to gain spots out there. That data really did help and made a ton of difference in our night. Between that feedback and the changes we made during our pit stops tonight, I was able to become more confident in the car and run harder with each run of the night. I needed just a little more on the short runs to get going, but overall, this was one of better races we’ve had in the last few weeks. We’ll take this and continue to fight next week at another short track.”-Tyler Reddick

Track: Richmond Raceway, 0.75 Mile D-Shaped Oval
Race: 28 of 36
Event: Federated Auto Parts 400 (300 miles, 400 laps)

Michael McDowell
No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops | Speedco Ford Mustang

Started: 20th
Finished: 25th

Stage One: 24th
Stage Two: 25th
Stage Three: 25th

Michael McDowell and his No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops | Speedco Ford Mustang would take the green flag from the 20th position on Saturday night, under the lights of Richmond Raceway. Early into the run, McDowell radioed to his crew saying, “I’m slowly losing my power steering,” an issue that McDowell was forced to race with throughout the remainder of the evening. During the Competition Caution on Lap 30, Crew Chief Drew Blickensderfer made the call for 4 tires, an air pressure adjustment and fuel. Once racing resumed, the remainder of Stage 1 would stay green and the No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops | Speedco Ford Mustang would take the first green-and white-checkered flag from the 24th position. During the Stage Break, McDowell would pit for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment after noting that his race car “tightened up as I ran.”

During Stage 2, pit strategy and green flag pit stops was the name of the game. McDowell would bring his No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops | Speedco Ford Mustang to pit road under green on Lap 185 for 4 tires and fuel before going on to finish the caution-less Stage 2 from the 25th position. McDowell would pit during the Stage 2 Caution for 4 tires and fuel.

In the caution-less final stage of Saturday night’s 300-mile race, the No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops | Speedco Ford Mustang would continue to run in and around the 25th position. Halfway through the stage, McDowell noted that he was having trouble with his right front, saying “I’m having to over-slow the middle … having trouble turning.” Shortly after that, Blickensderfer came over the radio to say that a piece of trash was stuck over the intake of the right front brake cooling duct. McDowell would pit under green on Lap 293 for 4 tires and fuel, and go on to take the checkered flag at from the 25th position at Richmond Raceway.

McDowell on Richmond:

“Well that was a long night at Richmond. We fired off pretty good on the first run and I felt like we were going to have something, but I’m not exactly sure what happened on the second run; we just got really loose and lost a lot of track position for a while before finally getting it back. Without a lot of cautions, there weren’t many opportunities to get bunched back up. It wasn’t the run that we wanted for our No. 34 Love’s Travel Stops / Speedco Ford Mustang, but we stayed close to the guys that we’re racing with in the points and we’ll keep fighting; head to Bristol and try to get a better run in there. Everybody did a good job and worked really hard, we just didn’t quite have it tonight.”

Track: Richmond Raceway, 0.75 Mile D-Shaped Oval
Race: 28 of 36
Event: Federated Auto Parts 400 (300 miles, 400 laps)

John Hunter Nemechek
No. 38 MDS Trucking Ford Mustang

Started: 31st
Finished: 30th

Stage One: 30th
Stage Two: 26th
Stage Three: 30th

John Hunter Nemechek took the green flag to start Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series event at Richmond Raceway in 31st place. After a few laps, Nemechek reported an issue with the steering wheel in his No. 38 Ford Mustang, as well as a “pretty bad brake shake.” At the Competition Caution on Lap 30, Nemechek pitted for 4 tires, fuel, and track bar and packer adjustments. By the time he finished Stage 1 in 30th place, Nemechek said that he “needed to be able to wrap the bottom better… feels a little tight center but free off.” Crew Chief Seth Barbour called him to pit road for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment.

Nemechek would start Stage 2 at the rear of the field, due to an uncontrolled tire penalty. Throughout the caution-less run, Nemechek’s No. 38 machine was “a tick snug center, little free off” and “struggled on power.” Nemechek dabbled in the top 20 while green flag pit stops cycled through, and by the time he took the green- and white-checkered flag in 26th place, he said his last adjustment helped and the balance wasn’t bad. He pitted at the Stage Break Caution for 4 tires with a slight air pressure adjustment, fuel and a wedge adjustment.

Nemechek would start the Final Stage of the night at Richmond Raceway in 23rd place. Shortly after Lap 280, he made contact with the wall off of Turn 4 but sustained minimal damage and would pit under green for 4 tires and fuel several laps later. Nemechek would continue to battle through the remainder of the all-green Final Stage, crossing the finish line in 30th place.

Nemechek on Richmond:

“It was a tough night for our No. 38 team. We had an issue with the steering wheel from the start, and just couldn’t really catch that much of a break throughout the race. We were free for the most part, and just struggled on power. But the great thing about this Front Row Motorsports team is that we never give up. My guys still do everything they can to set us up for a good finish. We have some notes to add to our short track notebook, so we’ll hit the reset button at the shop this week and move on to Bristol.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
4th AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW NORKOOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE
5th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
9th ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM / TRUCK HERO CAMARO ZL1 1LE
11th TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CAT RENTAL STORE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
13th KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Brad Keselowski (Ford)
2nd Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota)
3rd Joey Logano (Ford)
4th Austin Dillon (Chevrolet)
5th Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)

UNOFFICIAL CURRENT PLAYOFF RANK (Following Round 2 of 10)
POS. DRIVER (* = Chevy Contender)

1. Kevin Harvick (Ford): Win
2. Brad Keselowski (Ford): Win
3. Denny Hamlin (Toyota): + 64/Clinched by Points
4. Joey Logano (Ford): +51
5. Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota): +38
6. * Austin Dillon (Chevrolet): +36
7. * Chase Elliott (Chevrolet): + 28
8. * Alex Bowman (Chevrolet): + 27
9. Kyle Busch (Toyota): +18
10. Aric Almirola (Ford): +7
11. * Kurt Busch (Chevrolet): +7
12. Clint Bowyer (Ford): +3________
13. * William Byron (Chevrolet): -3
14. Cole Custer (Ford): -8
15. Matt DiBenedetto (Ford): -25
16. Ryan Blaney (Ford): -27

The NASCAR Cup Series seasons continues at Bristol Motor Speedway with the Bass Pro Shops Night Race on Saturday, September 19th,, at 7:30 p.m. ET to conclude the Round of 16 for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Live coverage can be found on NBCSN, the NBC Sports Gold app, PRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW NORKOOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 4th
“I feel like I gave one away tonight. Our Dow NORKOOL Chevrolet was so fast tonight. We had a massive day for stage points, which is going to help us out big picture-wise. We had a speeding penalty in Stage 1, and to come from the back to the front in that Stage just shows how fast our Chevy was tonight. This No. 3 team is on fire right now and showing up when it matters. I have a line here and it’s been working. I run a little lower on the straightaway and it gives me good forward drive. I saw some other drivers start picking it up and laying the rubber down on that line. It might have hurt us a little bit at the end of the race, but the biggest thing is when we came to pit road for our second green-flag stop in Stage 3 we were trying to bring everybody down. The No. 1 car was in my mirror on tires. I overdrove that entry just a little bit thinking that I needed to avoid getting rear-ended, and then it was like ‘Oh no, I’m going to hit the red box’ so I had to make another lap around the track. That cost us three seconds. It probably killed our deal, but it was still early, so who knows. It was a lot of fun out here tonight and I think we had the best car tonight, so thanks to Justin Alexander and everyone at RCR and ECR for giving us a solid Chevy tonight. We’re headed to Bristol Motor Speedway in a good spot and it’s exciting to know we still have eight more chances to try and get another win. Our confidence level for Bristol is pretty high.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 5th
FOUND THE FRONT A COUPLE OF TIMES. WHERE WAS THE NO. 9 OFF JUST A LITTLE BIT TONIGHT?
“First off, we were way better than we’ve been here, probably ever, so I thought that was a big improvement for us. We really needed it here. This has been a really, really tough track for us. I thought we got our NAPA Auto Parts Camaro good, especially through the middle portion. Just got a little behind, I think, as the race went on to roll the center as good as we needed to late in a run. But, we were way, way better than we’ve ever been here I feel like before. And consistently all night, too. I thought that was a pretty big step for us at a track that we’ve really struggled at.”

THE HARD WORK WAS NOT LOST BY ANY OF US – WE KNOW HOW HARD EVERYONE BACK AT THE SHOP WORKS TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN. HOW DID THEY GET THAT DONE AND WHERE DID THEY IMPROVE THE MOST FOR YOU HERE?
“I feel like Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) and all our guys just tried to find trends over the last number of years – the things we’ve struggled with and look at some of the things we’ve done good. The only problem was there wasn’t many things that we’ve done good here with. So, just trying to pick apart those fine details and I really think we hit on a few of them. Certainly weren’t the best, but way better than we’ve been here before I feel like in my opinion. I think that was a big deal for us.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM / TRUCK HERO CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 9th
“How about that? We ended up top-10 at Richmond. That is like a miracle. We had a really good car and definitely better than a ninth-place car. I made my fair share of mistakes and we had some issues getting on and off pit road. We lost some time there. I am pumped for Truck Hero and CHEVYGOODS.com. It is really weird to be this pumped about running ninth, especially when we had a much better car than ninth. Last time we were here we ran, I think, 24th. This is good momentum for us going into the cutoff race next week in Bristol.”

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CAT RENTAL STORE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 11th
“I think Richmond Raceway is one the most challenging tracks on the circuit, but my No. 8 Cat Rental Store team did a great job tonight helping me find my rhythm and build a strong run out there with our Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE. Not having any practice here for my first Cup start, it took me a little bit of time in the first Stage to figure out how the best way to get around here with the balance I had in our car. My whole team did a great job of analyzing the SMT data available to us in real-time and relaying to my spotter, Derek Kneeland, on what I needed to be doing differently on track to gain spots out there. That data really did help and made a ton of difference in our night. Between that feedback and the changes, we made during our pit stops tonight, I was able to become more confident in the car and run harder earlier in each run of the night. I needed just a little more on the short runs to get going, but overall, this was one of better races we’ve had in the last few weeks. We’ll take this and continue to fight next week at another short track.”

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 13th
“Our pit strategy just didn’t turn out the way that we had hoped. We really had to work hard early in the race to manage the tires and an ill-handling car. The guys did a nice job working on the balance, to make the Monster Energy Chevy better on the long runs. With no cautions to help us out we just weren’t able to catch a break that we needed. Who ever thought we would a short track with no unplanned cautions?”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 21st
MINUS FOUR GOING INTO BRISTOL – HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT? HOW DISAPPOINTED ARE YOU GOING THERE BELOW THE CUTOFF LINE?
“It is what it is – we ran horrible tonight and no excuse for that. It was really kind of a slow death the entire race, so we’ll go to Bristol and regroup for that one.”

ARE YOU SURPRISED YOU’RE IN THIS POSITION? DID YOU THINK YOU’D BE IN A BETTER PLACE?
“No, I mean we knew Richmond was our biggest struggle of the Playoffs. The first time I came here, it seemed like things were pretty good. And then last year, we really struggled here and obviously didn’t really improve. It’s disappointing. We just have to put this one behind us and go to Bristol. I think we’ve ran OK at Bristol – top-10 in the spring and made the All-Star race. So, I think we just have to go there and hopefully have a good run.”

DOES THE EXPERIENCE OF BOUNCING BACK AT DOVER THE DAY AFTER HAVING A BAD RACE GIVE YOU ANY CONFIDENCE IN BEING ABLE TO BOUNCE BACK FROM THIS?
“Not really, just because I feel like we had a chance to work on the car the second day and improve. When you miss it, you miss it. There’s no practice, there’s nothing really to identify with. We knew pretty early on in the race that we were in trouble. I think we lost like 10 spots in 10 laps it felt like. When you’re in that position, you just have to try to change it up as a driver and try to do different things. But I think going to Bristol, it’s a track that we can have a good setup at. We’ve ran decent there in the past, so we can hopefully look at that.”

I HEARD YOU SAY YOU STRUGGLED TONIGHT, BUT WHAT HAPPENED? WHAT WENT WRONG FOR YOU GUYS THAT YOU JUST DIDN’T HAVE IT?
“It seemed like every time that we entered the corner with any sort of brake pressure at all, we were pretty much locking the left front and sliding across the track. We were really tight in. Typically, you’re loose in here and we were extremely tight into the corner, locking the left front up and having to get off the brake as quick as possible to keep the front tires turning. That just doesn’t make a lot of speed and anytime we tried to go any faster than that, we were just killing the front tires off the car. Pretty much just had to run around there about 80 percent most of the time and try to have something for the end of a run. But typically, we just fell off like a rock at the end of each run that we had to run out to our pit stop. With no cautions, it kind of is what it is.”

FIRST OFF, JUST HOW SURPRISED WERE YOU THAT THE ONLY CAUTIONS WERE THE COMPEITION CAUTION AND THE STAGE BREAKS?
“I think it’s expected at Richmond. We are sliding around a lot, but because we’re sliding around so much, it’s kind of expected every lap that you’re going to slide around. Everyone in the field did a good enough job to manage that and you’re not going to see a lot of cautions when everyone kind of knows that grip is low and you’re just out there racing your car. You can’t really battle anybody for position that hard because you’re that low on grip. It’s just the way this track is. It’s fun as a driver, but obviously has very little cautions because of it.”

OBVIOUSLY WITH THE WAY THE PLAYOFFS ARE, FOR SOME DRIVERS, CERTAIN ROUNDS ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS. AS YOU MENTIONED, THIS WAS GOING TO BE A TOUGH RACE FOR YOU AND JUST THE WHOLE ORGANIZATION. HOW DID YOU GO INTO THE PLAYOFFS AND HOW IMPORTANT WAS DARLINGTON BECAUSE OF WHAT THE POTENTIAL ROAD BLOCK WAS HERE?
“It was important. I think we did pretty much our job there – we finished top-five. I felt like we missed out on some stage points. We knew this track was going to be tough. Last year, we saved ourselves in this round with the Roval – qualifying on the pole and finishing sixth. We don’t really have that to lean on that much this year, so we have to perform at Bristol. Definitely our toughest round. I’d like to say if we can get through this round, the rest of the Playoffs will be great. But we’re here and this is what we have to do.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

TRUEX JR. SCORES ANOTHER STRONG RUN AT RICHMOND
Denny Hamlin scores a Playoff point, clinches his spot in the Round of 12

RICHMOND, Virginia (September 12, 2020) – Martin Truex Jr. (second) drove to his fourth straight top-three finish at Richmond Raceway to lead Toyota in the Federated Auto Parts 400 on Saturday evening. Kyle Busch (sixth) earned his second consecutive top-10 finish to start the Playoffs, while Denny Hamlin (12th) clinched his spot in the round of 12 with his finish. Hamlin added to his Playoff Point total with his stage one victory.

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Richmond Raceway
Race 27 of 36 – 300 miles, 400 laps

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Brad Keselowski*
2nd, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
3rd, Joey Logano*
4th, Austin Dillon*
5th, Chase Elliott*
6th, KYLE BUSCH
12th, DENNY HAMLIN
15th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
22nd, ERIK JONES
29th, DANIEL SUÁREZ
38th, TIMMY HILL
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 2nd

What were you looking for from the car tonight that you didn’t have for one more position?

“A little bit of turn in the center, a little bit of drive off, especially on the long runs. Just could never really find it. Really was pretty surprised that we ran as good as we did with the way that the car felt. It really wasn’t doing anything that I wanted it to do or that we’ve done here in the past when we’ve been good. Just a battle all night, fought hard and the guys did a great job with adjustments, pit stops and all that to just execute and keep us up front. Good, solid night.”

What did you learn with this tire tonight that you might be able to use in Phoenix?

“We ran Phoenix earlier in the year and it didn’t do, I didn’t feel like, what it did here. It was quite a bit different here. This place has so much more tire wear than Phoenix, it’s really hard to compare that. Hopefully, we learned some stuff that we can make this thing better when we come back here next year.”

Where did you struggle with handling tonight?

“I don’t know, just never really could get the balance right all night. It was slow on the short run early and slow on the long run late. Somewhere in between we would be pretty competitive, but we just never could really put it all together. I was really surprised that we ran second with how it felt early in the rave. I was like, ‘Oh boy, this is going to be a long night.’ Obviously, quite a different deal with this tire. It felt a lot different to me and the things that were really good the past few years, I couldn’t do them. Needed a little practice time, maybe needed another stab at it. Overall, obviously solid day for our Bass Pro Toyota Camry. Thanks to everybody who helps us and makes this possible and all the guys at the shop. It was a good rebound week. Obviously, want to win every one of them, but if we can run top-two or three every week like we’ve been for a while now, we’ll be where we want to be.”

How consistent is this team right now?

“We’re strong. I feel like we’re executing well and we’re not making mistakes like we did early in the season, aside from last weekend obviously on the race track, but that was me, not the team. Just solid every week. Fast race cars and everybody is making good decisions. Hopefully, we can keep putting ourselves in the front and we’ll win some races eventually.”

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 6th

Where were you struggling tonight to run down the leaders?

“Kind of same as last night. Just not quite enough turn in the middle of the corner to keep wrapping on the long runs. The short runs it seemed like I was actually a little bit loose and then it was starting to go a little bit tight and then it was tight loose. Just not enough overall grip I guess. Kind of been fighting that a little bit this year. The guys gave a great fight. Adam (Stevens, crew chief) not being here and I thought Jacob (Canter, fill-in crew chief) did a great job. We all know Adam was back at home. Want to say hi to Samantha (wife) and Brexton (son) back at home. I know they went go-kart racing this afternoon so they had a good time I’m sure. We’ll check in with them. Overall, that’s all we had. We fought hard with our M&M’s Camry and we came up short of a top-five.”

How much did you try to apply from what you learned in yesterday’s Xfinity Series race and do you think it helped you improve your finish?

“Probably yeah. There’s no way in telling, but I’m just going to guess four spots at least. Probably a 10th place car to a sixth-place car there with everything that we were doing. What I learned in the Xfinity race and what I talked to Adam (Stevens, crew chief) about and those guys about to make some subtle changes to what the car and what we were looking for out of tonight’s car. Good stuff I guess. Good learning tool for us and it looked good for the 20 too on the Xfinity side with Harrison (Burton). He was a whole heck of a lot better so there was some stuff from that. That didn’t translate to us quick enough because we were through tech by the time that race was over.”

Did it sound any different on the radio tonight without Adam Stevens on the pit box?

“It was not difficult. It seemed like everything was pretty kosher so not too bad there. I think that there was just a delay in communication when I would say something and expect an answer back, it was two laps before I would get an answer back. Other than that, it was just a good night for us. Just a long night with all the green flag action and being able to mire our way up through there. Going to need some Rowdy Energy to get home tonight and also rehydrate here for tomorrow.”

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Cares Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Finishing Position: 12th

You win stage one and then what happened to the race car?

“Well, we lost some track position. It just seemed like once the track rubbered up, we just weren’t any good. We couldn’t get off the corner good, couldn’t get in the corner. Just nothing was really very good with it. I want to thank everyone from FedEx Cares for putting this car on the race track. This definitely means a lot to people I spoke to last week with the National Urban League, so thank you everyone. We will move on to the next round and go have some fun next week and see how we do.”

You mentioned earlier this week that you take a lot with how you run with a certain tire. Does how you ran tonight worry you at all for Phoenix?

“Well, the surface is so different. We run the same tire, but there really should be two different tires. This track’s surface is a lot different than Phoenix’s surface, so I think they were just trying to get a little more common for every race track. I wouldn’t put a huge merit into this one. The surface at Loudon more represents what we will have in Phoenix.”

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About Toyota

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Team Penske NASCAR Cup Series Race Report
Track: Richmond Raceway
Race: Federated Auto Parts 400
Date: September 12, 2020
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No. 2 Western Star/Alliance Parts Ford Mustang – Brad Keselowski
Start: 9th
Stage 1: 4th
Stage 2: 1st (Seventh Stage Win)
Finish: 1st (Fourth Win of the Season)
Status: Running
Laps Completed: 400/400
Laps Led: 192
Point Standings (behind first): 3rd (-31)

Notes:

Brad Keselowski scored his fourth victory of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season in dominating fashion Saturday night at Richmond Raceway. Keselowski took the lead on lap 353 when he passed Austin Dillon and never looked back, crossing the finish line over two seconds ahead of second-place Martin Truex Jr. The driver of the Western Star/Alliance Parts Ford claimed his second victory at Richmond Raceway and the 34th Cup victory of his career. Keselowski moves up to third in the NASCAR Cup Series driver standings, 31 points behind leader Kevin Harvick.

Stage 1 was quiet and productive for Keselowski. He started ninth and steadily worked his way through the field to score a fourth-place finish when the stage ended on lap 80. At the end of the stage, Keselowski said he needed to be tighter all the way around. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins made the call for a track bar adjustment during a four-tire stop under the stage caution on lap 84 and Keselowski restarted third on lap 89.

Keselowski and teammate Joey Logano battled for the lead early in Stage 2 before Keselowski wrestled the top spot away on lap 121. By lap 138 teams that chose the strategy of pitting twice during this 155-lap segment (including Kevin Harvick) began to pit. Bullins chose to pit once, under green on lap 162, for four tires and no adjustments. From there, Keselowski walked the tightrope of marching his way through traffic while not abusing his tires. His efforts were rewarded when he passed Dillon for the lead on lap 218 and held firm to the top spot over the next 17 laps to grab his seventh stage victory of the season. He pitted under caution on lap 239 for four tires and fuel and restarted as the race leader on lap 243.

The Western Star/Alliance Parts team adjusted their strategy for the third and final stage with Bullins opting for two stops during the final segment. Keselowski led until he pitted under green on lap 294 for four tires. He returned to the track in fourth position and passed Joey Logano for the lead on lap 317. Keselowski made his final stop under green on lap 342 and 11 laps later made the race winning pass around Dillon.

Quotes: “It was a great race for us. I’m really pumped about this performance and the way we’ve run on the short tracks. I felt like we would run well here at Richmond with our Western Star/Alliance Parts Ford Mustang. Jeremy Bullins and the entire 2 team performed excellent. We were expecting long green flag runs and we knew this was going to be a really big pit strategy race. We had the speed and we had the strategy. This team did it all.”

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No. 12 Menards/Libman Ford Mustang – Ryan Blaney
Start: 15th
Stage 1: 25th
Stage 2: 20th
Finish: 19th
Status: Running
Laps Completed: 398/400
Laps Led: 0
Point Standings (Behind First): 16th (-109)

Notes:

Ryan Blaney finished 19th in Saturday’s night race at Richmond Raceway. The driver of the Menards/Libman Ford Mustang battled a tight car most of the night to come home with a top-20 finish.

Blaney started 15th and made his way up to 11th by lap 5 but fell back to 14th at the time of the competition caution on lap 30. He reported to crew chief Todd Gordon the Menards Ford was too tight in the center of the corners.

The driver of the No. 12 Mustang pitted on lap 33 for four tires and a track bar adjustment. Unfortunately, Blaney would have to make a second pit stop to tighten loose lug nuts. He restarted 33rd on lap 37 and made his way to 25th when Stage 1 concluded on lap 80.

Blaney would restart 21st when Stage 2 began on lap 89. He reported slight improvements to the balance of the Menards Ford. Unfortunately, the loss in track position would hinder Blaney as he fell a lap down to the leaders and would finish 20th when Stage 2 concluded on lap 235.

The final stage began with Blaney restarting one lap down in 19th position. He would make his final pit stop on lap 341 and would cross the line in 19th position at the race’s conclusion.
Blaney remains 16th in the NASCAR Playoffs, 109 points behind leader Kevin Harvick heading into next week’s cutoff race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Quote: “Tough night for our Menards/Libman team. We have to win next weekend. It is pretty plain and simple. It is our goal every week to win the race but now it is our season on the line. We will see if we can get it done. We have been pretty close at Bristol before, it is just a matter of trying to put a whole race together there.”

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No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang – Joey Logano
Start: 2nd
Stage 1: 3rd
Stage 2: 4th
Finish: 3rd
Status: Running
Laps Completed: 400/400
Laps Led: 45
Point Standings (Behind First): 4th (-34)

Notes:

Joey Logano started second and finished third in Saturday night’s Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway, running solidly inside the top-five throughout the event and leading 45 laps in the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang. The race featured long green-flag runs with Logano being too tight in the center of the turns for much of the 400-lap event.

Logano started the race needing more center turn in the Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang, but reported the car continued to improve the longer the opening run went. On the first pit stop at lap 30, crew chief Paul Wolfe adjusted with trackbar and tape on the nose of the No. 22 Ford. Logano finished the opening stage in the third position and still needing more center turn.

After leading the opening laps of the second stage, Logano settled into the second position until the team pitted at lap 162 for four tires and an air pressure adjustment. Logano finished Stage 2 in fourth position, struggling as the Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang continued to build tight once the grip on his Goodyear tires went away.

In the final stage, Logano continued to run inside the top-five with his teammate Brad Keselowski. Wolfe called Logano to pit road at lap 294, allowing Logano to leapfrog Keselowski and into the lead. Both Logano and Keselowski were now committed to a two-stop strategy for the final stage.

The remainder of the race ran green, with Logano holding firm to third position, keeping with the trend of running in the top-five for the entire evening. Logano heads to the first elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway next week third in the standings, 34 points behind leader Kevin Harvick.

Quote: “It was a pretty calm race and we just kind of hung around in the top three the whole time. I felt like our Shell-Pennzoil Ford was pretty good in the beginning of the race. It just seemed like we had third to fourth-place speed and we finished third. We scored stage points and a top-five and that puts us in a pretty good spot for next weekend. I’m proud of the effort and proud of what we’ve picked up here lately since the playoffs started. We just have to keep it rolling.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400 – RICHMOND RACEWAY
FORD PERFORMANCE DRIVER – POST RACE QUOTES

FORD FINISHING RESULTS:
1st – Brad Keselowski
3rd – Joey Logano
7th – Kevin Harvick
8th – Aric Almirola
10th – Clint Bowyer
14th – Cole Custer
17th – Matt DiBenedetto
19th – Ryan Blaney
23rd – Ryan Newman
24th – Chris Buescher
25th – Michael McDowell
27th – Corey LaJoie
30th John Hunter Nemechek

BRAD KESELOWSKI GIVES FORD SECOND STRAIGHT WIN TO OPEN CUP PLAYOFFS

• Brad Keselowski won his fourth race of the season tonight.
• The win is the 34th of his Cup Series career and 25th with Ford.
• The win is Mustang’s 16th of the season.
• Today’s win is Ford’s 702nd all-time in NASCAR Cup Series competition.
• Of Team Penske’s 78 MENCS wins with Ford, 51 have come since rejoining Ford in 2013.

BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 2 Western Star/Alliance Parts Ford Mustang — VICTORY LANE INTERVIEW — DO YOU EXPECT TO LEAD ALMOST HALF THE LAPS TONIGHT? “It was a great race for us and the 2 team. This is, I think my car from Loudon, and I wanted to do a really cool burnout with it, but I want this car for Phoenix. It’s 2-for-2 and I’m real pumped. I don’t want to look too far ahead. We’ve got to get there. The next round is gonna be really difficult, but, still, I’m really pumped about this performance and the way we run at short tracks. I felt like coming in here with the Western Star/Alliance Ford Mustang that we would run well, but this thing was awesome.”

WHAT KIND OF STATEMENT IS THIS FOR PHOENIX? “We’ve got to get there. The last two years I haven’t made it all the way, so we’ve got to get all the way there, but if we can get to Phoenix, we’re gonna be really good.”

HOW PATIENT DID YOU HAVE TO BE WITH ALL THE DIFFERENT STRATEGY? “Very patient. I tell you, it’s a chess game and I got blinders on. I don’t know what everybody is doing and who is where and who is on what strategy, but Jeremy Bullins, the whole 2 team, excellent performance. I can’t thank them enough. Thank you, team. Thank you everybody at Team Penske that gave me such a great car. It’s a really special day.”

YOU MADE TWO MINOR ADJUSTMENTS AT THE START AND DIDN’T TOUCH IT THE REST OF THE NIGHT. HOW AWESOME WAS THAT FORD? “Yeah, it was really good. Our Mustang was really hauling. It’s nice that we broke the curse of the black and yellow car. Twice in a row it’s been in victory lane this year and we haven’t been able to win with it the last six years, so it’s good to do that for these guys. This car was really strong and I really got a great rhythm out on the racetrack. You’ve got to get a really precise rhythm for how you get around here and I was able to find that very early on, put a lot of thought into what I was gonna do and it paid off.”

NOT MANY CAUTIONS AND A LOT OF GREEN FLAG RUNS. DID YOU ALTER YOUR STRATEGY AT ALL? “No, we were expecting there to be long green flag runs. We knew this was gonna be a really big pit strategy race, but we had the speed, we had the strategy. This team today did it all.”

THIS IS A SPECIAL PLACE FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY. “It’s been 22 years since he won my family’s first NASCAR race, so it’s nice to keep that going.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang — “It was a pretty calm race and we just kind of hung around in the top three the whole time. I felt like our car was pretty good in the beginning of the race. The track kind of tightened up a little bit and we lost a little bit of speed to the 19 and the 3 a little bit and also, obviously, the 2. Congrats to those guys. They were fast today. It just seemed like if we fixed the turn I got loose off, so it seemed like pick your poison a little bit. It just seemed like we had third to fourth-place speed in our car and we finished third with the Shell/Pennzoil Mustang. We’re doing what we have to do. We scored stage points and a top five and puts us in a pretty good spot for next weekend. I’m proud of the effort and proud of what we’ve picked up here lately since the playoffs started. We just have to keep it rolling. If we keep getting top fives we’ll get all the way to Phoenix. We just have to keep doing that.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Libman Ford Mustang — “We have to win next weekend. It is pretty plain and simple. With the bad couple of races we have had here to start the playoffs off, we probably need to go out there and win Bristol. That is our mindset. That is our goal. It is our goal every week to win the race but now it is our season on the line. We will see if we can get it done. We have been pretty close at Bristol before, it is just a matter of trying to put a whole race together there.”

YOU HAD TO COME DOWN A SECOND TIME TO FIX THAT WHEEL AND WERE UNABLE TO DRIVE BACK THROUGH THE FIELD. “Yeah, we started off okay and the first pit stop we had to come back in and start way at the back. We put lugnuts on the thing and those are mistakes you can’t have and we weren’t really able to drive back up through the field and lost a lot of time, and then that just kind of sets you back. It’s just another frustrating night here at Richmond. It’s frustrating because we put a lot of work into this weekend throughout the whole week and felt like trying something different and it just didn’t work out. That’s definitely frustrating and it definitely stinks going to Bristol being so far back and probably having to win the race, but it’s been a good track for us so we’ll see what we can do. I want to thank Menards. I wish it was a little bit better night, but we’ll move onto Bristol. We’ve got one more shot at trying to make it through.”

HOW DO YOU LOOK PAST WHAT’S HAPPENED THE LAST TWO WEEKS AND LOOK FORWARD TO BRISTOL? “There’s nothing you can do about it now. What happened at Darlington happened and what happened tonight is already done and gone, so all we can do is look for Bristol and go try to have a really good run and try to win the race and move on. That’s our only hope, but we certainly picked a bad time to start running bad, but hopefully we can get it turned around. We’ve got one week to do it.”

MATT DIBENEDETTO, No. 21 Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford Mustang — “If there is one track to be in a must-win situation that I would choose it would definitely be Bristol. I think we have a good shot at it. It is one that I am excited about and have circled off in this round. I think obviously tonight was a tough one on us. It is tough with no practice. We had to really make a lot of changes on the car on the pit stops. We got it where it needed to be but it took a little while because of no practice. We got it driving decent and then there were just no cautions to get us back on the lead lap and get us in contention to have a decent day which we would have if we got the car right. So, we will go to Bristol and do the best we can. I think we definitely have a great shot at it. We won the Open earlier this year and have a lot to build off of. Our teammates were good and I feel good about our chances for sure. And I have some unfinished business I guess after last year as well.”

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE TONIGHT? “It just took us a while to get our car where we needed it and we did get it where we needed it, but there were no cautions. We rode around and were in the lucky dog spot for what felt like an hour and I’m like, ‘Man, a caution would be great right now,’ and it just never came. We were just kind of stuck behind the eight-ball the rest of the day. We did struggle with the car and then we got it to where, honestly, I was pretty happy with it. It was decent. It wasn’t lightning fast, but maybe call it a top 10, top 12 where we could have salvaged an okay day, but I guess we’ve got to go to Bristol and win.”

YOU ALMOST WON THERE LAST YEAR. WHAT ARE THE CHANCES YOU CAN WIN NEXT SATURDAY? “I feel good about it. All these guys on the Wood Brothers Racing team, I’m proud of them. They’ve been working really hard. I hate that we had a bad weekend last weekend and a not-so-great this weekend here, but Quick Lane being on the car and Menards, Motorcraft, everybody at Ford has been putting a lot of effort into this thing. Going to Bristol is obviously an exciting race and one that we feel good about and have a lot to build on and I think we can go there and perform.”

AFTER THE ELATION OF JUST MAKING THE PLAYOFFS DOES THIS SHOW HOW TOUGH THE PLAYOFFS ARE? “Yeah, it can be quite humbling, I’ll say that. We had a stretch through the mid part of the year where I felt like we couldn’t possibly mess it up. We’d drive up in the top five and top 10 every single week and you’ve got all this confidence and then you can have a stretch where you just get pounded in the ground and it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh,’ but it just shows how tough the competition is and how perfect you have to be as a team, especially with no practice and then on top of that races where it’s a lot of green flag just like this. You can get humbled. It’s very tough.”

CLINT BOWYER, No. 14 Ford Performance Racing School Ford Mustang — “Certainly, Johnny being back home and Greg did a good job of filling in and making decent adjustments, but we were just off a click. Honestly, I thought we’d come to Richmond and run better than that. We needed to run better than that. Tenth place isn’t gonna cut it when you get in the playoffs. We’re looking for more than that on these short tracks in particular. We’ve still got one more. It’s a lot of fun going to Bristol. Being nervous about something there’s a sense of fun in that. I’m looking forward to next weekend and seeing how it all shakes out. We were good last time there and there’s no reason why we can’t be it again.

YOU ARE ABOVE THE CUTLINE, SO WHAT KIND OF CONFIDENCE DO YOU HAVE FOR BRISTOL? “It looks like I’m plus three, so I’d rather be plus three than negative three.”

BOWYER PRESS CONFERENCE

HOW CONFIDENT ARE YOU MOVING TO BRISTOL? “For the time being, I’m frustrated with tonight. It was a challenge. We just struggled all night long. We were just off a beat, but at the end of the day we’re still in it. We’ve got to go to Bristol and perform. I like the racetrack. We’ve got some top 10s going and we’re definitely better, but we’ve got to be great next week. We can do it. That’s a good track for us and a lot of fun and a track that I feel like I can win at some day, so there’s nothing to be scared about going to a track like that. You’ve just got to go there and have fun with it like you always do on a short track and race your asses off and hopefully that will be enough.”

HOW MUCH DOES RACING TWICE THIS YEAR AT BRISTOL HELP YOU? “I don’t know. Obviously, if we ran on the short tracks as good as I’m accustomed to running we’ve got to find something, but we can’t panic and shoot ourselves in the foot, either. We’ve got to go to Bristol and have a good weekend.”

WHY WERE THERE NO CAUTIONS TONIGHT? WHY DOES IT RACE LIKE THAT? “My opinion is the tire. I think something is not meshing with the track. You look out there on the racetrack and all night long it’s had a lot of racing on it this weekend and it looks like a highway out there. It wasn’t putting any rubber down on the track and they’ve got to do a better job of that. That’s unacceptable as far as I’m concerned. I’m a fan of this sport and we’re gonna ask fans to come back one of these days and we’ve got to put a better show on than that. We can’t have it run lap after lap after lap with no cautions. Something’s got to change there and the first thing I’d change if I owned it would be the tire.”

WHAT IS THE KEY TO GETTING THROUGH BEING ON THE BUBBLE? “Just do the best you can and don’t make mistakes. We’ve cleaned a lot of those mistakes up that I spoke of going into the playoffs and we’re still in this thing, but, for me, yeah it’s nerve-wracking or whatever but it’s also fun. It’s fun to feel that way. It keeps you alive. That’s what racing is all about. That’s what competition is all about. You go into a weekend and it’s just no big deal, hell, that ain’t any fun.”

DO YOU TRY TO PLAY IT SAFE AT BRISTOL OR GO FOR THE WIN? “You’re always going for the win. If you’re in contention, you always go for a win. I’ve never went to a racetrack thinking I couldn’t win. The day that happens is the day you won’t see me anymore.”

COLE CUSTER, No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang — “It’s just classic Richmond, I guess. You just try and fight and fight all night for that perfect kind of balance and it’s just really hard to find. This track, it’s like you’re on ice out there pretty much, so putting a perfect car together is really hard. We had times where we were pretty good with our HaasTooling.com Mustang and there were times where we were a little off, and it just kind of led to an okay day. I think we’re still eight points out, so it’s not too bad and we can go to Bristol and if we have a good day, we can lock ourselves in, but it’s just gonna be a fight all the way to the end.”

IS THERE A POINTS PATH YOU FEEL LIKE WHERE YOU DON’T HAVE TO WIN THE RACE? “Yeah, for sure. It all depends also on how the guys in front of us run, but we can definitely control a lot with eight points. We can go out there, if we have a good day, get stage points, we’ll be right in the thick of it.”

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT BRISTOL? “I have mixed feelings about that. The first race I thought we were good. The All-Star Race I thought we struggled a little bit, so I think it’s a place I’ve had success at in the past, it’s just you’ve got to hit it perfect and we don’t have any practice.”

CUSTER PRESS CONFERENCE

HOW DOES THIS EXPERIENCE COMPARE TO THE XFINITY SERIES PLAYOFFS? “It’s definitely intense, for sure. Honestly, I think it’s a little bit less intense than normal just because you don’t have the practice and the qualifying — you don’t have all of those intense moments throughout a weekend. So, now it’s just kind of you’ve got the race and it is what it is — how it’s gonna unload and what’s gonna happen that first lap. There’s only so much that you can stress about. You’ve got to do your homework. You’ve got to make sure that you are prepared when you go to the racetrack and that you’re ready to adapt to what the car is gonna bring you, but there’s not as many places that you can mess it up, I guess, during a weekend. At least you have that, but the hard part is the unknown of not knowing what you’re gonna have.”

HOW MIGHT HAVING TWO PREVIOUS RACES AT BRISTOL HELP YOU CLOSE THE GAP ON YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH NO PRACTICE? “I think it’s definitely nice to go back to a track that you’ve raced twice at. You’ve tried a couple different things. At the same time, we’d definitely like a practice for us rookies so we could try some things, but, at the same time, we should hopefully have a little bit of a notebook that we can try to bring our best piece back to Bristol. It’s gonna be interesting. Obviously, in this day and age with no practice or anything you’ve got to hit it perfect pretty much when you unload off the truck, so, if not, you’re just kind of scratching and clawing for everything that you’ve got throughout the day. It’s very hard to hit it right when you don’t have that practice to kind of dial the thing in.”

HOW DO YOU ASSESS YOUR SITUATION? “We’re not in a desperate position. We’re in a position where we can control a lot of what happens and if we have a good day and run good and get stage points, we can point our way in. It also depends on how the guys around us run a little bit, but I feel like if we have a good day out of Bristol, we can get ourselves into the next round. I think we’re not in a bad spot. It’s still manageable.”

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT THIS RIGHT NOW IF YOU DON’T GET OUT OF ROUND ONE? IS IT STILL A SUCCESSFUL SEASON? “I know I’m not gonna be happy. If you get knocked out of the playoffs at any point, you’re not gonna be happy with it, but we can probably look back and hang our heads high on whatever we’ve accomplished this year and how far we’ve come, but when you’re a competitor and that’s what we do, you want to go out there and I feel like we’ve grown enough as a team throughout this year and I think we’ve shown it in these last two races. When we hit it right, we can go and compete with these guys it’s just a matter of getting that extra little bit of running in the top five or so and if you can do that, that moves you on to the next round and we’ve just got to find that at Bristol.”

ARE YOU STARTING TO FEEL MORE PRESSURE ABOUT HAVING A SHOT AT THE SECOND ROUND? “I’m sure when we get to Bristol and we’re about to take the green I’m gonna be pretty nervous because that’s gonna be a really hectic race that a lot can happen, obviously. But, at the same time, I think I’ve learned in these playoff situations that being nervous and stressful is not gonna help you. You’ve got to make sure you have a plan and make sure you’re just studying your butt off coming into that race so you know what you’re gonna be thrown into. The hard part that you stress about is just the unknown, like I said. You don’t know what you’re gonna have that first lap, so you just hope they hit it right and if you don’t, you try to manage it the best you can and figure out how you can help it.”

RICHMOND, Va. (Sept. 12, 2020) – Chris Buescher finished 24th on Saturday night at Richmond Raceway, after battling a tight-handling Fastenal Ford Mustang for much of the 400-lap event.

Buescher rolled off the grid 25th, and held track position when the competition caution came out on lap 30. The team pitted for four tires, fuel, an air pressure adjustment and a track bar adjustment. Back on track 20th, the driver was able to stay steady for a while but got shuffled back a few positions with reports of a tight handling ford. The team took the green-white checkered flag 23rd for stage one.

The team visited pit road at the stage break for fuel, a wedge adjustment and fresh tires. After a quick stop, Buescher got back on track to restart 16th. When the green flag waved, Buescher gave it all he had but was shuffled back to 22nd. At lap 160, the No. 17 team pitted under green for a track bar adjustment, fuel and tires. With the stage going caution free, Buescher ran out of laps to move forward and finished stage two 27th.

The Prosper, Texas native came down pit road at the stage break for another air pressure adjustment, fuel and fresh tires. The team restarted 25th and one lap down. By lap 265, the driver reported that his Ford was free handling and had no drive. The team discussed the best way to tighten up the car and decided to pit under green at lap 291. After a stop for tires, fuel and additional adjustments, Buescher got back on track in 25th. Buescher maintained track position – gaining one spot to finish the race 24th.

Buescher and the No. 17 team return to track at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 19 at 7:30 p.m. EST on NBC Sports Network, PRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.