[autotag]Chris Buescher[/autotag] entered the 2024 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway with a 21-point cushion for the final playoff spot; however, it wasn’t enough. Buescher missed the playoffs by six points after Chase Briscoe’s victory. If a repeat winner claimed the trophy on Sunday night, the driver of the No. 17 Cup car would’ve made the 10-race playoff.
Following the event, Buescher talked about missing the playoffs and how NASCAR’s system didn’t work in their favor. Essentially, Buescher was 0.001 seconds away from making the playoffs at Kansas Speedway.
“We got back in contention there at the end and got a decent finish out of it,” Buescher said. “We just didn’t quite get it done again and we’re on the outside looking in. It’s just the system we’re all playing in. We had such a great year. Everyone at [RFK Racing] has worked so hard. We’ve been so fast. We’ve outrun so many of these cars that are gonna get to run for a championship, but that’s the system and we didn’t work it right.”
Buescher finished 11th in the point standings, but it wasn’t enough, as seven drivers below him won a race in 2024. Austin Dillon’s stripped playoff eligibility made it so only six drivers leaped Buescher at the end of the day. It is a very disappointing end for Buescher, but he will use this as motivation to steal a playoff victory over the next 10 races.
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