Chris Beuscher Wins Fog-Shortened Race at Pocono Raceway

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LONG POND, PA – RIS – Rookie Chris Beuscher won the Pocono 400 on Monday when thick fog overtook visibility on Pocono Raceway.  The race consisted of 138 of the scheduled 160 laps.  Beuscher took the top sport by staying on the track, outlasting faster cars that had pitted behind him.  When the red flag flew Buescher was nervous and anxious waiting to see if the race would resume or he would end up in Victory Lane.

I’m thinking of every kind of rain dance I can,” Buescher told his crew over the radio.

Brad Keselowski, who was running Beuscher down in the final laps, finished second, Regan Smith was third, Kevin Harvick fourth, and Tony Stewart fifth.

When the race was called, it became his first Sprint Cup win in his first season on the tour.  The 2015 XFINITY Series champion ended a 118 race victory drought for his Front Row Motorsports Ford team since David Ragan won at Talladega in 2013.  Beuscher called the long wait for NASCAR to call the race stressful.

“It was stressful, Buescher said.  “I tried to not get my hopes up because I know how these things can play out.  Mother Nature can be really nice sometimes and really mean others.

“If that sun had come out it would have changed our whole day.”

Joey Logano led the most laps on the day.  He had a fast car, but a crash on Lap 106 with Chase Elliott ruined his day.  Elliott got loose over the Tunnel Turn and ran Logano into the wall.  Elliott took full blame for the incident.  Elliott’s car was also heavily damaged.

“I take full responsibility for that wreck,” Elliott said.  “I’ve got to re-think how I’m running these races because what I’m doing now isn’t working.”

One of the main battles during the race was the back-and-forth between Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon.  Just before Lap 67, the two young drivers ran side-by-side, traded a little paint, and showed aggressive moves.  Larson finished 6th and Dillon 13th.  Both are on the bubble for a Chase spot.

Beuscher finally inherited the lead on a group of green flag pit stops starting at Lap 124 and was running up front when NASCAR threw the 7th and final caution flag on Lap 133.  The cars ran five laps, but the fog worsened and Beuscher was declared the winner.

Now that Beuscher has a win, he must finish in the Top 30 in points to get a Chase berth.  He’s six points behind Ragan, who drives for BK Racing this year.  He is the first Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate to win a race since Logano won in 2009.  It also was a rain-shortened race at his home track in Loudon, New Hampshire.

Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Pts Bns Driver Rating Status Tms Laps
1 22 34 Chris Buescher # Dockside Logistics Ford 138 44 4 76.2 Running 1 12
2 7 2 Brad Keselowski Alliance Truck Parts Ford 138 40 1 108.0 Running 2 8
3 30 7 Regan Smith APC Chevrolet 138 38 60.8 Running
4 17 4 Kevin Harvick Mobil 1 Chevrolet 138 38 1 121.5 Running 2 7
5 6 14 Tony Stewart Mobil 1 Chevrolet 138 36 89.8 Running
6 11 42 Kyle Larson Target Chevrolet 138 36 1 115.8 Running 4 37
7 4 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Ground Toyota 138 34 97.8 Running
8 2 19 Carl Edwards Stanley Toyota 138 33 103.8 Running
9 16 18 Kyle Busch M&M's 75th Anniversary Toyota 138 33 1 98.7 Running 1 1
10 15 41 Kurt Busch Monster Energy/Haas Automation Chevrolet 138 31 81.5 Running
11 18 21 * Ryan Blaney # Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford 138 30 87.1 Running
12 5 31 Ryan Newman Caterpillar Chevrolet 138 30 1 96.7 Running 1 1
13 12 3 Austin Dillon American Ethanol Chevrolet 138 29 1 109.3 Running 3 3
14 13 47 AJ Allmendinger Scott Products Chevrolet 138 28 1 83.0 Running 1 1
15 23 5 Kasey Kahne Great Clips Chevrolet 138 26 91.4 Running
16 21 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe's Chevrolet 138 25 70.7 Running
17 9 20 Matt Kenseth Dollar General Toyota 138 24 82.5 Running
18 14 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr Roush Performance Ford 138 23 62.3 Running
19 31 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Ford 138 22 60.7 Running
20 19 1 Jamie McMurray Cessna/McDonald's Chevrolet 138 21 68.8 Running
21 20 13 Casey Mears GEICO Chevrolet 138 20 65.7 Running
22 26 10 Danica Patrick Mobil 1 Chevrolet 138 19 58.0 Running
23 29 95 Michael McDowell Malwarebytes Chevrolet 138 18 52.7 Running
24 35 44 Brian Scott # Medallion Financial Ford 138 17 48.2 Running
25 25 16 Greg Biffle Ford EcoBoost Ford 138 17 1 75.0 Running 1 14
26 28 15 Clint Bowyer 5-hour Energy Chevrolet 138 15 49.0 Running
27 24 88 Jeff Gordon Nationwide Chevrolet 138 14 60.0 Running
28 34 83 Matt DiBenedetto EJ Wade Construction Toyota 138 13 41.3 Running
29 39 46 Michael Annett Allstate Peterbilt Group Chevrolet 137 12 37.7 Running
30 32 38 Landon Cassill MDS Transport Ford 137 11 40.0 Running
31 36 98 * Cole Whitt Chevrolet 137 10 33.5 Running
32 33 23 David Ragan USA Network Toyota 135 9 33.5 Running
33 8 24 Chase Elliott # NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet 134 8 74.6 Running
34 38 30 * Josh Wise Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet 132 7 29.7 Running
35 3 27 Paul Menard Moen/Menards Chevrolet 119 6 59.2 Running
36 37 32 Jeb Burton(i) Erie Insurance Ford 117 0 27.8 Running
37 10 22 Joey Logano Shell Pennzoil Ford 115 6 2 108.1 Running 3 38
38 1 78 Martin Truex Jr Furniture Row Toyota 82 4 1 62.8 Accident 1 16
39 27 43 Aric Almirola Smithfield Ford 66 2 35.2 Accident
40 40 55 * Reed Sorenson Vydox Plus Chevrolet 29 1 24.0 Engine