07/16/2024

RFK Advance | Indianapolis

Indianapolis Event Info:
Date: Sunday, July 21
Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
Series: NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Location: Speedway, Indiana
Format: 160 Laps, 400 Miles, Stages: 30-65-65
TV: NBC
Radio: SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90)

Weekend Schedule:
Friday: 2:30 p.m. ET, Practice (NBC Sports App, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday: 1 p.m. ET, Qualifying (USA, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Sunday: 2:30 p.m. ET, Race (NBC, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

Pace Laps:

• For the first time since the 2020 season, NASCAR will run on the 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The last three seasons, the sport has competed on the infield road course.
• Brad Keselowski is a former champion of the Brickyard, and has the fifth-best average finish of any driver at Indy entering the weekend (12.9).

6 Team Info:
Crew Chief: Matt McCall
Partner: BodyGuard

17 Team Info:
Crew Chief: Scott Graves
Partner: Castrol Edge

Keselowski at Indy
Starts: 11
Wins: 1 (2018)
Top-10s: 6
Poles: —

• Keselowski enters the weekend as a prior winner at the Brickyard, having won the 2018 Brickyard 400. Otherwise he has six top-10s overall including three finishes of fourth or better, all of which came in the last four races on the oval.
• The 2012 Cup Champion has led laps in seven events at Indy with a 12.9 average finish dating back to 2010.
• Despite no pole at the Brickyard, Keselowski has six top-10 starts, including a career-best third in 2014.
• Keselowski won the Xfinity Series event at Indy back in 2012, leading 33 laps in the No. 22 car.

Buescher at Indy
Starts: 5
Wins: —
Top-10s: 1
Poles: —

• This weekend marks Buescher’s sixth start on the oval track at Indy. He carries a 18.8 average finish into the weekend with a career-best ninth back in 2017.
• Buescher’s best qualifying effort at Indy came in 2019 (16^th).
• Buescher also ran a pair of Xfinity events at Indy back in 2014-15, earning finishes of 11^th and 16^th, respectively.

RFK Historically at Indy
Cup Wins: —

• Chasing History: Indianapolis is one of just three active NCS tracks that RFK has not visited Victory Lane at, along with Chicagoland Speedway and Kentucky Speedway. Despite not earning a victory, RFK has finished in the second position on four separate occasions (1998, 2003, 2006 and 2008) with drivers Mark Martin, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards.
• Ragan’s Row: Former RFK driver David Ragan earned the organization’s first pole position at the famed 2.5-mile speedway in the 2011 running of this event. Overall, RFK has had one of its Fords on the front row at the hallowed speedway four times.
• Tale of the Tape: RFK has made 99 starts in the NCS at Indianapolis dating back to 1994. In that span, RFK has 16 top-five and 31 top-10 finishes, with an average finish of 18.6.

Last Time Out & Where They Stand
Pocono: Both RFK Fords led laps Sunday at Pocono (39 combined) as Keselowski earned stage points in each of the first two stages, before finishing seventh. Buescher finished 11^th.

Points Standings (6: 9^th, 17: 12^th): Keselowski continues the points shuffle, now back to ninth, while Buescher is again up a position to 12^th with now five races remaining in the 2024 regular season.

By the Numbers at Indy

Race      Win       T5           T10         Pole       Laps       Led        AvSt      AvFn     Miles

99           0              16           31           1              14842    178         21.5        18.6        37105

15           0              1              6              0              1420       2              14.9        12.8        3550

114         0              17           37           1              16252    180         18.2        15.7        40655