Chris Buescher, one of the most talented drivers in the current crop of NASCAR Cup Series competitors, is arguably the sport’s best-kept secret. Despite consistent performances this season, he flies under the radar. His journey in the sport hasn’t been a cakewalk either.
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After his first Cup Series win at Pocono in 2016, it took five years for Buescher to reach victory lane again. However, before entering the top tier, he was considered a star in the making.
During his stint in the Xfinity Series, Buescher had quickly proved his mettle, finishing seventh in his rookie full-time season in 2014 and capturing the championship in his second year. Before that, though, his initial years in ARCA were marked by some big challenges, though he won the ARCA championship in 2012.
In a recent conversation with Jeff Gluck on the 12 Questions segment, Buescher reflected on those testing times, expressing pride in how he navigated those rough waters.
“I think back to our ARCA racing days, driving for Roulo Brothers [Racing] up there in the Chicago area… It was brutal, just grueling,” recalled the 32-year-old.
“We were working 89 hours a week. We did not have enough help. We had a bunch of people who volunteered their time from local body shops coming over and trying to mud a fender back together,” added Buescher.
The RFK Racing driver shared that in his early days, he was overwhelmed by the pace of his rivals. Yet, being young and relatively free of other commitments, he was able to continue and ultimately started thriving under pressure. Buescher now realizes that those challenging days were also filled with joy that he hadn’t fully appreciated back then.
Buescher had left home from Texas at the age of 15 for North Carolina in the hopes of becoming a professional racer. He and his family were convinced of this by Ken Ragan, who ran the Legends car program in Carolina back then.
Chris faced other daunting challenges as well. Because of his travel commitments, he was homeschooled. And he had to work hard to balance his racing aspirations with academics.
Buescher also took up Dale Carnegie’s classes to refine his public speaking since media training and friendliness play a huge role in a racer becoming a star. All that hard work, training, and single-minded focus reaped him rewards during his ARCA Menards stint from 2009 to 2013.
Buescher etched his mark in ARCA history when he won the championship in 2012. He became the first and only competitor in ARCA to finish every lap of the season’s races. At 19, he completed all 19 races without a single DNF, winning the championship by a decisive 75 points over the seasoned Frank Kimmel.
Fast forward to 2025, and Buescher continues to work hard, trying to make a mark in the Cup Series.
Does being called an underdog bother Buescher?
Last season, Buescher narrowly missed the playoffs, landing at P17. But he did capture a win at Watkins Glen, besting Shane van Gisbergen.
Besides that, he was also part of a big moment at Kansas, where he was defeated by Kyle Larson by a mere 0.001 seconds, the tightest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history.
However, despite noteworthy performances, Buescher is often seen as the underdog — a label he’s familiar with but unfazed by.
“Not really. I’ve been in that position most of my career. We’ve been more of an underdog for a long period of time. To some extent, we should be in the conversation a little bit more. We’ve been able to put results up on the board and acquire wins and be a rather large part of the resurgence here at RFK,” said Buescher.
Buescher will tackle Bristol Motor Speedway next weekend, where his overall average finish is 18.2. However, in the Next Gen car, his performance at Bristol has been much better. Over four races, he boasts an average finish of 6.5, including a win, two top-5s, and one top-10 finish.
