It was difficult for the No. 17 RFK Racing NASCAR Cup Series team not to hang their heads in disappointment after driver Chris Buescher opened the Round of 8 with two finishes outside the top 10.
Following a gratifying regular season run that resulted in three wins and six top-five finishes, the team’s presence in the playoffs has tapered off.
Buescher’s 21st-place finish last week at Homestead-Miami Speedway put the No. 17 at a 43-point deficit to the cutline, forcing him into a must-win situation this Sunday at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
The climactic moment called for a pep talk from Jack Roush, the team’s co-owner.
“Jack Roush himself this week told us, he was like, ‘Hey guys. What you’ve done this year has exceeded expectations,’” said crew chief Scott Graves. “If you take a step back and look at it from that level, it’s something to be really excited about.”
But the reality is, success has become addicting for Buescher and Graves, and their drive to win each and every week has narrowed their focus, rather than seeing the big picture Roush mentioned.
While the Round of 8 is the farthest the Buescher and Graves combination has made it in the playoffs, both want to push onward to the Championship 4. With recent race winners Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell locked into the final round, there are only two playoff positions open at Martinsville.
“It’s still in front of us to get if we want it,” Graves said.
When evaluating the team’s playoff performance thus far, the crew chief points to the opener at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway and the first Round of 8 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as benchmarks of their improvement.
Buescher finished third at Darlington and 11th at Las Vegas.
“Darlington, he really kind of attacked the weekend there…Vegas, we qualified well and were running really well that first stage,” Graves recalled. “This weekend will be a real chance for him to step it up and see what we can do.”
If winning relied purely on team chemistry, Graves believes the No. 17 would be a top contender. The intensity of the Round of 8 has strengthened the core of the RFK crew, beyond the crew chief and driver relationship.
“Not just Chris (Buescher) and I, but the engineers, car chief — it’s brought us all a little closer in terms of communication,” Graves said. “Even the pit crew. We’ve been practicing with them every week, just as a team. Hopefully it’s something that has not only helped us here, but we’re going to be able to take into next year and get even better.”
His sentiment speaks to the perspective he’s taken into consideration since his talk with Roush — that everything can be a building block for an even greater 2024 season.
“We’ll keep building on it,” Graves said. “To me, that’s the big positive is what this means for the long-term outlook. We’ve been able to show that growth over the last two years. Hopefully we’re back in the Round of 8 again next year.”
The more playoff appearances and the more experience they have operating under pressure, the better prepared they’ll be and the better they’ll perform when it matters.
“This is all a learning experience for us,” Graves said. “But in the moment of what we’re trying to do now, I say, we want to go ahead and we want to get out there and win this weekend and really go for it.”