Go Bowling at The Glen: Chris Buescher defeats Shane van Gisbergen in Watkins Glen thriller

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — RFK Racing used a great strategy to put Chris Buescher up front when it mattered the most at Watkins Glen International, which helped him earn his first NASCAR Cup Series win of the year in a thrilling overtime showdown with Kaulig Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen.

Buescher, who has been one of the best road-course racers in NASCAR during the Next Gen era, held the lead heading into the NASCAR Overtime restart. He quickly lost it to van Gisbergen, who made the mistake of clipping the wall at the entrance of the Bus Stop, allowing the driver of the No. 17 BuildSubmarines.com Ford to find Victory Lane in the Go Bowling at The Glen.

“Oh, man, it’s such a good build, Ford Mustang is so great,” Buescher said. “The long-run speed was phenomenal. I thought we lost it there on that last one. Just, man, to stay right there with him [SVG], that was the spot that he was better than us. He missed it, so I tried to cross over. Went to cut and just hard race there. Just such an awesome finish. To be that good for so much at the end of the race, all race, to get a win, it’s good. We came here to be a spoiler. We’re going to do that where.

Buescher missed the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs but played spoiler just as he said by winning in Upstate New York as a non-playoff driver.

Another driver who has played spoiler before was the driver of the No. 16 WeatherTech Chevrolet. Van Gisbergen entered Watkins Glen with a Cup Series win last year in Chicago and three Xfinity Series wins on road courses this year.

He was looking to add one more trophy but unfortunately for the Kiwi, his error behind the wheel cost him the race as he finished second.

“I don’t know, it was a hard one,” van Gisbergen said. “I gave him a little bump to get the spot, and I knew it was going to come back. So, I was just pushing the entries and trying to get away and just made an error.  Pissed because these races are hard to win, and we have had a rough run in the Cup Series this year. The WeatherTech Camaro was really good, fastest car all day, and it just didn’t work out.”

Some surprise faces appeared in the top five as the Spire Motorsports rookie drivers Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith ran up front most of the day to finish third and fifth respectively. The third-place finish for Hocevar was the best in his Cup Series career up to this point.

“I just needed some more confidence into Turn 1,” Hocevar said. “I did everything right, all the way until Turn 1, and then I just lifted a little too early. When I lost leverage, it was just game over from there, but I had a really good shot for the win. We were last in practice with a bunch of issues. I’m just super thankful that we were able to turn the weekend around for the No. 77 Mattress Warehouse Chevy team.”

Results from the 2024 Go Bowling at The Glen are listed below:

Other Race Facts

Multiple cautions throughout the day affected many of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs drivers. Eight of the 16 title contenders were involved in cautions and at least two others had something go wrong while on track.

Ross Chastain had one of the best races in his Cup Series career after leading 51 of 92 laps (55%), starting from pole and winning Stage 2. Chastain ended up finishing fourth.

“Once we had that caution at the end of Stage 2, it took us out of control of the race, for Shane (van Gisbergen) and I,” Chastain said. “I would have still been able to restart on the front row, and I messed up with passing the No. 6 with like 20 to go and let the No. 77 get by me. It was just a driver error, and I messed up. Once he was back by me, I didn’t have enough to go back and pass him again.

“It was so much fun to take our Busch Light Chevy and put it on the pole, and race with Shane, who has taught me so much in the last year. To be able to pace with him, in front, behind and all around, for about three-quarters of the race. Just fell off too much at the end, but we still had a shot. I saw Shane move the No. 17 on the last restart and I thought, maybe they all crash, but was just stuck behind them.”

According to statistician Trey Ryan, Spire Motorsports had all three cars inside the top 10 for the first time as an organization. As aforementioned, Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith finished third and fifth, while Corey Lajoie was eighth.

Juan Pablo Montoya made his return to the Cup Series, driving the No. 50 Mobil 1 50th Anniversary Toyota for 23XI Racing. Montoya, who has not raced in NASCAR for 10 years, was running in the top 15 for most of the day before being trapped a lap down during a pit cycle.

Chase Briscoe was the best of the playoff drivers in sixth. In fact, according to reporter Seth Eggert, this was the first time in the playoff era (since 2004) that no playoff drivers finished inside the top five.

Not a single Toyota finished inside the top 10, with Christopher Bell in 14th being the highest finisher for the manufacturer. Bell also took the lead in the points standings.

The next race on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Round of 16 elimination race under the lights at Bristol Motor Speedway. The Bass Pro Shops Night Race will take place on Saturday, Sept. 21 at 7 p.m. ET on USA Network.