09/09/2024
Keselowski Finishes 19th at Atlanta in Opening Race of Playoffs
Keselowski Finishes 19th at Atlanta in Opening Race of Playoffs
Buescher DNF Following Crash in Final Stage
HAMPTON, Ga. (Sept. 8, 2024) – Brad Keselowski finished 19th Sunday afternoon in a rather uneventful opening race of the 2024 NASCAR Playoffs. Chris Buescher ran inside the top-10 late but retired early following a crash with 60 laps remaining.
6 Recap
Keselowski began the day from the 19th spot coming off Saturday’s single-car qualifying session. The opening stage of 60 laps looked to run caution free until the closing laps, when the No. 5 took a hard hit, displaying the first yellow of the afternoon at lap 56. That caution would also serve as the stage end with Keselowski in 23rd.
The King’s Hawaiian Ford rolled 33rd for stage two following the first pit stop opportunity of the afternoon. The race went caution-free for the next 46 laps as Keselowski was scored 15th at lap 113, when crew chief Matt McCall called him to pit road for a fuel-only stop. That strategy put him eighth on the ensuing restart, resetting the track position for the final 41 laps of the segment. Keselowski went on to finish the stage 14th.
From there, he was unable to gain much track position, restarting the stage 20th. He worked as high as 17th by lap 181, but despite a pair of late yellows, could not manuever through the field well enough.
He restarted 25th for NASCAR Overtime, and sliced through a last-lap incident to finish 19th.
“It just wasn’t a super strong day,” Keselowski said following the finish. “We kind of survived and we’ll live to fight another day.”
17 Recap
Much like Keselowski, Buescher spent a large majority of the afternoon finding his pace in the Fastenal Ford. After starting 17th, Buescher went on to finish 26th to end stage one. After a stage two result of 27th, he took right side tires only in the stage break, flipping the track position to 13th to begin stage two.
Another caution flew just a handful of laps later as Buescher took fuel only that time, restarting 14th at lap 181. Then, just as be entered the top-10 around 200, Buescher lost his handling on the bottom lane on lap 206, collecting a handful of other machines.
His day would end early as the right-side damage was too severe to continue.
“Ultimately, that’s not how we wanted to go out,” Buescher said following the crash. “I’m definitely disappointed and screwed up there. I got a really good run, got to the bottom and we’d been able to keep really good pace on the bottom, and then just caught a bump and stepped out and ended up making a crash.
“I’m disappointed in myself for that one. It certainly wasn’t our typical Atlanta day, either. We’d been so good here, but I had to fight for the handling today. The team made good adjustments and good calls to get us close to the front, but I just messed it up when it counted.”
Up Next
Watkins Glen International hosts race two of the playoffs next weekend. Race coverage is set for 3 p.m. ET Sunday on USA, with radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).
About RFK Racing
RFK Racing, in its 37th season in 2024, features an ownership lineup pairing one of the sport’s most iconic names, Jack Roush, along with NASCAR Champion, Brad Keselowski, and Fenway Sports Group owner John Henry. Roush initially founded the team in 1988 and it has since become one of the most successful racing operations in the world, propelling him to be the first NASCAR owner to amass three hundred wins and capturing eight championships, including back-to-back NASCAR Cup titles in 2003 and 2004. Keselowski, a former owner in the NASCAR Truck Series, is the 2012 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. In 2007, Roush partnered with Henry, who also owns Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox, English Premier League’s Liverpool F.C., and the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins, to form Roush Fenway Racing. Off the track, RFK is a leader and proven winner in NASCAR marketing solutions, having produced multiple award-winning social media, digital content and experiential marketing campaigns. Visit rfkracing.com, and follow the team on all social platforms @rfkracing.
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