[autotag]Chris Buescher[/autotag] will go down in NASCAR history, but it’s not how he expected. Buescher and Kyle Larson came out of Turn 4 on the final lap of the NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway, banged doors, and took the checkered flag. The scoring pylon said Buescher won; however, the No. 5 car beat the No. 17 car by 0.001 seconds, representing the closest NASCAR Cup Series finish ever.
Following the event, Buescher climbed out of his car in disbelief after being declared the winner, only to have it stripped away by 0.001 seconds. The RFK Racing driver spoke about his heartbreaking and historical defeat to Larson.
“I don’t know what to say right now,” Buescher said, “I haven’t seen a replay other than just a picture. I just can’t see it in that picture. That sucks to be that close. It was a great finish for us, a really strong day. A lot of speed in this Castrol Edge Ford Mustang, and we really needed that. Needed a win more, and I thought might have had that one.”
The closest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history!
What. A. Race.
pic.twitter.com/Ye7mVU994T— Austin Konenski (@AustinKonenski) May 6, 2024
“Had a lot of speed there firing off. We were really good really all day, and really proud of that. Had some good strategy to get us back up there and tried to cover what I could and gave him half a lane too much, I suppose, but good hard race right there down to the line. But yeah, just it hurts.”
Buescher will have to brush off this historic loss and put it in the rearview mirror. The No. 17 car was 0.001 seconds from winning his first NASCAR race of the 2024 season, but Darlington Raceway should be the focus now. Buescher has the ability to win races at the top level, and this should light a fire in the driver’s seat moving forward.
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