Buescher on verge of claiming berth in the Chase

Chris Buescher’s task, should he accomplish it Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway, is no small feat.

Buescher will try to parlay his improbable victory at a rain-shortened race this summer into a coveted berth in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. Making NASCAR’s playoffs would be a coup for Buescher and Denver-based Front Row Motorsports, an improbable participant in the Chase.

Buescher is eligible for the Chase by virtue of his August victory at Pocono . But the rules require the 16 drivers that make the Chase to be ranked 30th or higher in the standings, and Buescher is barely at that mark.

He goes into tonight’s race with an 11-point lead over David Ragan for 30th in the standings. So Buescher, last year’s Xfinity Series champion, needs a plan on how to race the regular-season finale.

“We are not in a full defensive mode,” he said Friday at the Virginia race track. “We can’t go out and just try to run every lap and stay out of everyone’s way. We don’t have that luxury. We are coming out here to race aggressively for every position, every point we can possibly get, without taking unnecessary risk.”

There are three scenarios in which Buescher can make the Chase without relying on the results of any other driver, and all require him to finish at least ninth. That’s probably a stretch considering Buescher has just two top-five finishes through 25 races this season. In fact, he’s only been 30th in the standings for three weeks. The rest of the year, the 23-year-old rookie has been as low as 38th.

Vying for spots in the Chase are some of the bigger names in NASCAR, all of whom drive for top organizations. There are three spots available Saturday night – four if Buescher falls below 30th – and a first-time race winner would snag one of the open slots.

The winless drivers on the cusp of taking a spot in the Chase are: Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports, Austin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing, Jamie McMurray of Chip Ganassi Racing and Ryan Newman, teammate to Dillon. All are ranked 14th or higher in the standings, making Buescher an anomaly in a system in which consistency reigns supreme.