Brett Moffitt’s move to the No. 55 MWR Camry in place of Brian Vickers opened the seat of the No. 34 Front Row Ford, and Roush Fenway Racing NASCAR XFINITY Series driver Chris Buescher was the choice to fill it.
Buescher got a Friday morning phone call from Roush Fenway general manager Robbie Reiser, telling him he was about to make his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut.
“I was actually getting breakfast over by the hotel, and Robbie Reiser called me,” Buescher said Friday at Auto Club Speedway. “It’s kind of similar to the way my first XFINITY race went down. I was getting ready for an ARCA race and got the call and was rushed to Richmond, so it’s been wild.
“I’m happy to help out Front Row and help out another Ford team. We’re trying to all work the best we can to make this happen as smoothly as possible. It’s going to be a wild weekend between the two schedules. I’m excited to get the opportunity, so I appreciate that very much, but we’re going to have to be on our toes this weekend.”
For Buescher’s sake, it’s a good thing the driver of the No. 60 RFR XFINITY Series Ford learned to keep his phone fully charged. Four years ago, Reiser couldn’t get through to the driver when he was looking for a sub for ailing Trevor Bayne.
“I learned that the hard way when I got the call from Robbie in 2011 when I was subbing in for Trevor,” Buescher said. “My phone was dead that morning, and he called and called and called, and it was a little while before I could actually get the phone charged and get back to him, and it was pure panic then.
“At least with this one I answered the first time.”
Buescher will start 33rd Sunday, Moffit 30th.
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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