Brad Keselowski evaluates Chris Buescher's chance of winning a race, making the playoffs

This season is the opposite of what the last two have been for Brad Keselowski, Chris Buescher, and RFK Racing. It is now the NASCAR champion and team co-owner who has a win on the year, while Buescher is still searching.

In 2022, Chris Buescher won the Southern 500, even though he missed out on the playoffs. Then last season, he won back-to-back races at Michigan and Richmond and then went on to win Daytona for three wins in five weeks, propelling him to the playoffs.

This year, Brad Keselowski has the upper hand with a win at Darlington. Meanwhile, Buescher has come close to winning this season, in fact, as close as anyone in NASCAR history has ever been without taking the actual trophy.

In an interview with Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports, Keselowski talked about Kansas, Buescher’s playoff chances, and more.

“I think it shows you how fickle a sport this is,” Keselowski explained. “Chris has had some really great races. He’s on a good stretch right now of competitive runs. Maybe Gateway didn’t quite go the way he wanted it to, but if you look at Sonoma, if you look at New Hampshire, even looking back at Charlotte where he ran really well, and at Kansas where he got as close to winning as you physically can [without winning]. And Darlington, you know. He’s on a stretch of races where he could win any week, he’s doing all the right things, but hasn’t caught any breaks. When he does, look out.”

RFK Racing has been able to hit on things over the last few years. They have come a long way. Now they just have to get both of their cars in Victory Lane in the same season.

Brad Keselowski: ‘Catastrophic’ to miss playoffs

Is Brad Keselowski worried about Chris Buescher missing the playoffs? Well, until he has a win, yeah, there is concern. Keselowski is in with his victory. But Buescher, if there are a couple of surprise winners, could find himself on the outside looking in.

Right now, the points say that Buescher is going to be alright. But nothing is guaranteed.

“Any time you’re not in, you’re stressed about it. We know, even though he’s got a couple car gap to the cutoff, a couple of new winners and that’s gone, very fast,” the RFK co-owner said. “So, I think we feel that pressure to get him in, feel that pressure to make sure he has the right equipment, resources around him, and we’re doing all we can and I’m confident he can get it done.”

If Buescher were to miss the playoffs, it would be disappointing. Not just from a performance perspective. There are a lot of people invested in the success of the 17 car.

“From an owner’s perspective, it’s catastrophic to miss the playoffs,” Keselowski said. “Whether it’s your sponsorships, your OEM relationships, your ability to recruit and retain talent in the shop or on the road, pit crew. It’s a really, really big deal.”

Is there a chance we won’t see Chris Buescher win a race in 2024?