DARLINGTON, S.C. — For the second week in a row, Chris Buescher had a win within his grasp only for it to painfully slip away. Unlike last week, though, when he lost to Kyle Larson by a NASCAR Cup Series-record 0.001 seconds, this time there was someone other than himself to blame. And that culprit happened to be parked next to him on pit road following Sunday’s race at Darlington Raceway.
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Once Buescher was out of his car, and seeing where Tyler Reddick had stopped, it was apparent what was coming next. Buescher was boiling over, and he quickly made a beeline for Reddick, shoving him and shouting, “What was that about?”
His anger was justified. Buescher had done nothing wrong. Reddick’s failed pass attempt late in the race pushed Buescher into the wall, ending any chance of Buescher scoring a win that would’ve essentially clinched him a playoff spot.
“We had clean racing all day long, and to get flat-out fenced like that, there’s no excuse,” Buescher told reporters shortly after. “It’s a poor decision and an immature move. I just don’t get it.”
One more look at what happened on pit road between @Chris_Buescher and @TylerReddick. pic.twitter.com/PBYHV62dgc
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 13, 2024
Buescher has been forced to swallow two tough results in consecutive weeks. The loss to Larson was a classic battle that could’ve gone either way; Buescher did little wrong, Larson was just better by the slimmest of margins.
The scenario was much different on Sunday. While Reddick had a run on Buescher with 10 laps remaining, with a little more patience he might have been able to pass Buescher without compromising either one of them.
But Reddick went for his second win of the 2024 season. That’s his prerogative. Wins and the bonus points that come with it are valuable come the playoffs, often the difference between advancing a round and elimination. There was also a chance he wouldn’t have as good an opportunity as this.
So Reddick tried to pull off a slide job entering Turn 1, only he never fully cleared Buescher and instead doored him into the wall. The contact ruined both their chances of winning: Buescher finished 30th, Reddick 32nd.
The finish at @TooToughToTame everyone is talking about. #Goodyear400 pic.twitter.com/oVMD1MHGqb
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 12, 2024
“I completely understand where he is coming from,” Reddick said. “He was running the top, running his own race, running his own line to keep me at bay. I made a really aggressive move and was hoping I was going to clear him. When I realized I wasn’t going to, I tried to check up to not slide up into him, but, yeah, I wish I wouldn’t have done that.
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“He did nothing wrong. Just trying to win the race, and to take myself out, that’s one thing, I can live with that, but just disappointed it played out the way that it did, and I took him out of the race as well.”
Reddick doesn’t have a reputation for aggressive driving. He mistimed the move, costing himself and Buescher. It happens. As the saying goes, “That’s racing.”
The problem is that Reddick’s mistake also negatively impacted Buescher. With Buescher not having a win at the halfway mark of the regular season, compounded by his poor finish Sunday, he finds himself only 15 points above the provisional line to qualify for the playoffs. This a precarious position, something he emphasized to Reddick on pit road. Lacking a winner’s sticker on his car — and the near-assurance of a playoff berth that comes with it — means he doesn’t have the luxury of shrugging this off.
“We don’t have that sticker on our door right now,” Buescher yelled at Reddick. “You need to be better.”
Who now does have a winner’s sticker on their car is Brad Keselowski, Buescher’s RFK Racing teammate and boss.
When Reddick and Buescher tangled, Keselowski, then in third place, capitalized. The win was his first since April 2021, a span of 110 races, and almost assuredly locks him into the playoffs. It also represents his first victory since joining RFK in 2022 as co-owner.
A 110-race winless streak is … OVER!
Repost to congratulate @keselowski on a huge victory! pic.twitter.com/xaiPgOUI0G
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 12, 2024
The unfortunate downside was his triumph came at the expense of his teammate, who again took a punch to the stomach.
“I hate that (Buescher) didn’t get the result out of it,” Keselowski said. “I know he had some damage on the car, and that was holding him back a little bit, so he wasn’t able to drive away like you would assume a leader would do in a situation like that. But I thought he did a great job of putting himself in position. And to not get a result, I’m sure it’s hard to stomach, and it should be hard to stomach. That’s what you want out of your driver. You want him to be upset when he doesn’t win.”
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As Buescher confronted Reddick, Keselowski was doing celebratory donuts, rejoicing that he was back in victory lane after a three-year absence. And then a few minutes after Buescher stormed away from Reddick and had propped himself up against the wall dividing pit road from the track, behind him Keselowski again drove by, this time with his two young children riding shotgun.
One RFK driver relishing in a significant accomplishment, another struggling to comprehend how victory had eluded him yet again.
“Brad winning a race, that’s huge. Congrats to Brad on a huge win,” Buescher said. “That’s awesome. (But) to be in contention and wiped out, selfishly, it’s hurting me.”
(Photo of Brad Keselowski celebrating Sunday’s win: Jeff Robinson / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Jordan Bianchi is a motorsports reporter for The Athletic. He is a veteran sports reporter, having covered the NBA, NFL, Major League Baseball, college basketball, college football, NASCAR, IndyCar and sports business for several outlets. Follow Jordan on Twitter @jordan_bianchi
