William Byron‘s Chevy skidded down the track and came to rest tilted against the wall with a tire jammed into Brad Keselowski‘s driver-side window in a late fight for position between two NASCAR playoff drivers.
Ryan Blaney wasn’t lucky enough to remain in the second playoff race long enough to gobble playoff points. The 2023 NASCAR champion was knocked out at Watkins Glen International on the opening lap Sunday, his Ford towed to the garage against his wishes.
Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., Harrison Burton. The list of playoff drivers who took a beating on the track — and in the standings — dwarfed the ones that escaped the road course unscathed.
Already set to retire from full-time racing at the end of the season, Truex had seen enough of the demolition derby that sabotaged his championship push.
“I just don’t understand how guys can call themselves the best in the world when they just drive through everyone on restarts at the end of the races,” Truex said. “It is what it is, these days. I’m out of here.”
With championship contenders succumbing to late wrecks, shredded tires and aggressive driving, Chris Buescher played spoiler and won Sunday at Watkins Glen International, leading a string of five non-playoff drivers to the finish.
“We would have liked to have won a couple of weeks ago, but this is huge,” Buescher said.
The chaos on the 2.45-mile course at The Glen — in the playoffs for the first time before it returns to an August date next year — shook up the playoff standings heading into the cutoff race.
Buescher held off Shane van Gisbergen in the thrilling two final overtime laps and won for the first time this season for RFK Racing. The 31-year-old Texan, who started 24th, has six career victories.