Buescher Comes Up Shy of Top-10 at Charlotte Motor Speedway

CONCORD, N.C. (May 24, 2014) – After chasing the handling on their No. 99 Rheem Toyota Camry during the two practice sessions on Thursday, the No. 99 Rheem team did their homework and gave James Buescher a car he could contend with on Saturday afternoon. Starting in the 15th position for the History 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the Texas native quickly moved up to the 12th position in the running order within the first five laps. After getting four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment on the first pit stop, Buescher started searching for a groove where he would get the most out of his Rheem Camry. After settling into a groove, the 24-year-old driver was turning some of the quickest lap times of all the competitors on the track. During a long green-flag stretch at the tail end of the 200-lap race, Buescher fell one lap down to the leader. While running just one spot out of the lucky dog position, an untimely yellow flag slowed the field, thus forcing the No. 99 Rheem team to take the wave around to get back on the lead lap. With 26-laps remaining, Buescher restarted towards the rear of the field on the lead lap and fought hard to make his way back up to the lead pack. Running on older tires than the lead pack, Buescher was unable to make up the ground needed to catch the top-10. Buescher went on to secure an 11th-place finish in the History 300.

James Buescher Quote: 

“Today was a good day for our Rheem team. We were able to make some strides in the right direction this weekend. When we started off in practice we were no better than an 18th-place car but my guys worked hard and we turned it into a contender for a top-10. One thing that could help our Rheem team is if we are able to start off strong in practice so we can fine tune on our Camry. We’re making progress, we’ll keep fighting and go on to Dover (International Speedway).”

Upcoming Race:

The NASCAR Nationwide Series will take on the Monster Mile next week at Dover International Speedway. The Buckle Up 200 can be seen live Saturday, May 31 at 2:00pm ET on ESPN. The event can also be heard on SiriusXM Satellite Radio, channel 90 and on MRN Radio.