Chris Buescher has one way to make this year’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs and that’s by winning Saturday night’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway (7 p.m. ET on NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
The Roush Fenway Racing driver enters Saturday’s regular season finale 17th in the series standings and 135 points away from Tyler Reddick. His only option to stay alive in the championship picture is to find his way to Victory Lane.
Buescher’s mindset heading to “The World Center of Racing” is very simple.
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“We already had it in our mind that we were gonna be a little bit more aggressive in these last couple races anyway and we were able to do that and get up to some decent track position at the end of that race and that’s kind of what we’re looking at for Daytona,” Buescher said.
“It’s the same thing — go out there and be a little bit more aggressive and when it comes down to the end of the race and you feel like you have an opportunity to win, no matter the risk at that point you’re probably going to take it because we are in a situation where there is one outcome that gets us into the playoffs and whatever we have to do to get to that point, we’ll go after that.”
While Buescher expects the aggressiveness to ramp up among his competitors he is also cognizant about keeping a balance and not going too far.
“There’s still a line to be drawn,” he said. “You’re not gonna intentionally wreck somebody. It’s not going to come down to turning somebody just because you’re upset, but what you just said is accurate. You’re not gonna cut the same breaks you would. If you have a fender or half a car on somebody and they go and try to close the gap, you’re definitely not gonna lift at that point.
“It’s a hard balance there because it has the potential to mess you up at the same time. Push a fender in on a tire, cut a tire down, or have to pit out of sequence, that’s the part where it’s hard to adapt.”
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Adding to the recipe Saturday is a new rules package for the Cup cars. NASCAR made some adjustments following the last superspeedway race at Talladega in the wake a several big accidents including Joey Logano’s car going upside down. A horsepower reduction as well as other aerodynamic adjustments were implemented in the name of safety. However many drivers including Buescher are unsure of just what to expect.
“I think the hope is to make it a little bit, I say safer but the idea is to hopefully make it to where when you’re pushing you don’t have the rear wheels off the ground of the car in front of you and hopefully that will make it to where we can dance around a little bit more and be able to race a little bit harder,” he said. “The current scenario is what’s got me more intrigued than anything else.”
But despite the unknown and variables that will greet drivers on Saturday it all boils down to a one thing for Buescher.
“We’re in a must-win situation,” Buescher said.
“There are probably some different strategies throughout there, but I feel like where I’m sitting at and looking it’s a lot of people saying this is our opportunity. It’s that one last shot and nothing else really matters at this point.”
