If there had to be a story about redemption, the Phoenix Cup Series race stands as a testament to that. For the last two years, the desert track has been associated with tragedies for Joe Gibbs Racing. Whether it was the unfortunate demise of Coy Gibbs or last year’s championship heartbreak of Christopher Bell, it was a story of heartbreaks. However, it is never too late to change the tidings of fate, and the team’s prodigy, Christopher Bell, simply reinforced it after his clinical victory.

However, it is not just Bell who is deserving of all the accolades but also the runner-up of the race and Brad Keselowski’s prodigy, Chris Buescher. The RFK Racing driver had met with a similar fate to Bell after losing out to his championship, despite his consecutive wins in the 2023 season. Trying to replicate a similar feat in Phoenix, it is apparent that the driver is met with dejection.

Chris Buescher remains dejected despite a favorable finish in Phoenix

The compulsion to perform better and park the car in the victory lane had intensified for RFK Racing’s co-owner, Brad Keselowski, after reaching the mark of 100 races going winless. While the former Cup Series champion is yet to put an end to his streak, he received a slight relief after his teammate’s performance in the 1-mile track. Chris Buescher earned a second-place finish behind the JGR prodigy with a difference of 5.4 seconds. However, the driver is far from being satisfied with his runner-up finish.

In the post-race interview, Chris Buescher expressed, “Yeah, great for us along the way. I just say thanks to the team for working hard together, and to make them back when needed, and be fast. Stoked about that, it even more impressive in my mind lights out pass. But I am happy with the fact that we were by no means perfect, because we have a room to improve. Make things better, that’s all. Definitely, we can go out there and fight next. So big day.”

Speaking on the performance that was displayed by the RFK Racing drivers in Phoenix under the new aerodynamic package, the Ford driver blatantly stated, “Our short run was not our strong suit, so I am not gonna lie to you, but we really came on strong and found the runs at the end. I don’t know; I have no clue if we were going to getting closer or not. I didn’t even see him, they were obviously lights out. The heck of a comeback from a last-place finish in last week to the one away from today. That was almost a win today.”

Although Chris Buescher did not have a favorable qualifier and qualified 14th in the main event, it was the team’s deft strategy that paid off. The decision to stay out of the pit road during the final caution, until the final 20 laps to go, propelled the driver to the front of the pack and secured the second position.

Brad Keselowski remains optimistic about the team’s steady rise

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There is no denying the fact that Christopher Bell’s #20 Toyota’s speed remained unmatched throughout the race. He raced in a league of his own, hence the difference of 5.4 seconds with Chris Buescher.  It was not just Buescher who was impressed by the performance of the JGR driver, but also Brad Keselowski. Although the driver has yet to put an end to his winless performance, he secured a top-5 finish in the race.

In the post-race interview, Brad Keselowski expressed, “It was a good solid day for us. We want to win these races but we didn’t have anywhere near the speed the 20 car did, I don’t know if anybody did to be quite honest.”

“We put ourselves in good position with a good pit call and a great restart at the end and we just tried to execute. The potential is there. We are just one step away and we are going to keep working on it until we get there.”

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With the first short-track race of the season done and dusted, it is time to patiently wait for the first concrete race on the track of Bristol void of its customary dirt. It will be interesting to see how RFK Racing fares in the race.