Chris Buescher made a dramatic final lap pass on Shane van Gisbergen at Watkins Glen to overshadow the playoff contenders and earn his first NASCAR Cup victory of the season.
Three-time Supercars champion van Gisbergen, making his eighth Cup start of the year, nudged Buescher wide into the first corner of overtime to snatch away the race lead.
The Kiwi held a slim advantage on the final lap, but touching the Armco on entry to the bus stop chicane unsettled his Kaulig Racing Chevrolet and allowed Buescher's RFK Racing Ford to get alongside into the carousel.
The two drivers made contact, but Buescher emerged ahead and van Gisbergen was unable to respond as Buescher made up for the disappointment of being edged out of playoff contention at Darlington by taking the checkered flag for the sixth time in his Cup career.
"Our long-run speed was just phenomenal," said a grinning Buescher after the race. "Thought we lost it there on the last [restart].
"That was the spot where he was better than us and he missed it. Tried to cross-over, he went to cut, but just hard racing there.
"Just such an awesome finish. To get a win is good. We came here to be spoilers and we're gonna do that."
Carson Hocevar finished third in a career-best finish, pole-sitter Ross Chastain was fourth, and Zane Smith finished fifth. Chase Briscoe was the best of the playoff contenders in sixth, ahead of Michael McDowell, while Corey LaJoie, Ryan Preece, and Austin Cindric rounded out the top-ten.
The race started in chaos with a multi-car crash on the opening lap, triggered when Corey LaJoie got into the side of Kyle Busch and sent him spinning.
Several drivers were collected in the bus stop chicane, leaving playoff drivers Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, and Brad Keselowski with damage. Blaney was unable to continue and classified last.
Chastain dominated the early going and led over half the race, but he was among those who chose to pit early while playoff drivers stayed out for valuable points. As a result Martin Truex Jr., who came into this race 19 points below the cut-line, won the opening stage.
A similar story appeared to be unfolding in the second stage, but when Daniel Suarez spun into the gravel, it completely changed the strategy for several drivers.
Leader Chastain and van Gisbergen were unable to get to pit road before the yellow flag and were forced to stay out until the stage break, choosing to run long on older tyres into Stage 3 instead of ceding their track position. As they stretched the fuel and the tyres, Buescher was able to pass both drivers, powering around the outside of Chastain into the final corner.
It seemed Buescher would cruise to the win but a caution for the shredded remains of Harrison Burton's left-rear tyre set up a sprint to the finish.
While the leaders kept it clean, Brad Keselowski - who had earlier spun Hamlin into the barriers - crashed with William Byron in the esses following a touch from Joey Logano that unsettled Buescher's RFK owner.
The race went into overtime, which led to another crash entering the esses with Truex, Busch, Tyler Reddick, and Chase Elliott just some of the drivers involved.
This set up the final restart when Buescher and Van Gisbergen battled for the victory.
With one more race in the Round of 16 playoffs, the elimination contest at Bristol, Hamlin, Keselowski, Truex Jr. and Burton are currently below the cut-line.
NASCAR Cup Watkins Glen Race Results
| Cla | Driver | # | Manufacturer | Laps | Time | Interval | Pits | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | C. BuescherRFK Racing | 17 | Ford | 92 |
2:38'41.591 |
5 | 40 | ||
| 2 | S. van GisbergenKaulig Racing | 16 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+0.979 2:38'42.570 |
0.979 | 5 | ||
| 3 |
C. HocevarSpire Motorsports
|
77 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+2.921 2:38'44.512 |
1.942 | 6 | 34 | |
| 4 | R. ChastainTrackHouse Racing | 1 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+3.311 2:38'44.902 |
0.390 | 5 | 43 | |
| 5 |
Z. SmithSpire Motorsports
|
71 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+3.739 2:38'45.330 |
0.428 | 8 | 32 | |
| 6 | C. BriscoeStewart-Haas Racing | 14 | Ford | 92 |
+3.843 2:38'45.434 |
0.104 | 5 | 43 | |
| 7 | M. McDowellFront Row Motorsports | 34 | Ford | 92 |
+3.951 2:38'45.542 |
0.108 | 6 | 30 | |
| 8 | C. LajoieSpire Motorsports | 7 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+4.265 2:38'45.856 |
0.314 | 6 | 29 | |
| 9 | R. PreeceStewart-Haas Racing | 41 | Ford | 92 |
+4.534 2:38'46.125 |
0.269 | 10 | 30 | |
| 10 | A. CindricTeam Penske | 2 | Ford | 92 |
+4.601 2:38'46.192 |
0.067 | 6 | 33 | |
| 11 | N. GragsonStewart-Haas Racing | 10 | Ford | 92 |
+5.065 2:38'46.656 |
0.464 | 6 | 26 | |
| 12 | K. LarsonHendrick Motorsports | 5 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+5.198 2:38'46.789 |
0.133 | 8 | 28 | |
| 13 | D. SuarezTrackHouse Racing | 99 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+5.575 2:38'47.166 |
0.377 | 9 | 31 | |
| 14 | C. BellJoe Gibbs Racing | 20 | Toyota | 92 |
+5.924 2:38'47.515 |
0.349 | 7 | 23 | |
| 15 | J. LoganoTeam Penske | 22 | Ford | 92 |
+6.414 2:38'48.005 |
0.490 | 6 | 30 | |
| 16 | T. GillilandFront Row Motorsports | 38 | Ford | 92 |
+6.443 2:38'48.034 |
0.029 | 8 | 21 | |
| 17 | B. Wallace23XI Racing | 23 | Toyota | 92 |
+6.512 2:38'48.103 |
0.069 | 8 | 20 | |
| 18 | A. BowmanHendrick Motorsports | 48 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+6.630 2:38'48.221 |
0.118 | 7 | 31 | |
| 19 | C. ElliottHendrick Motorsports | 9 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+6.947 2:38'48.538 |
0.317 | 7 | 23 | |
| 20 | M. Truex JrJoe Gibbs Racing | 19 | Toyota | 92 |
+7.168 2:38'48.759 |
0.221 | 7 | 27 | |
| 21 | J. NemechekLegacy Motor Club | 42 | Toyota | 92 |
+7.479 2:38'49.070 |
0.311 | 7 | 16 | |
| 22 |
T. GibbsJoe Gibbs Racing
|
54 | Toyota | 92 |
+7.517 2:38'49.108 |
0.038 | 7 | 22 | |
| 23 | D. HamlinJoe Gibbs Racing | 11 | Toyota | 92 |
+7.748 2:38'49.339 |
0.231 | 9 | 15 | |
| 24 | H. BurtonWood Brothers Racing | 21 | Ford | 92 |
+7.912 2:38'49.503 |
0.164 | 7 | 18 | |
| 25 | J. BerryStewart-Haas Racing | 4 | Ford | 92 |
+8.198 2:38'49.789 |
0.286 | 6 | 12 | |
| 26 | B. KeselowskiRFK Racing | 6 | Ford | 92 |
+8.520 2:38'50.111 |
0.322 | 9 | 11 | |
| 27 | T. Reddick23XI Racing | 45 | Toyota | 92 |
+8.952 2:38'50.543 |
0.432 | 9 | 14 | |
| 28 | A. DillonRichard Childress Racing | 3 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+9.503 2:38'51.094 |
0.551 | 7 | 9 | |
| 29 | J. HaleyRick Ware Racing | 51 | Ford | 92 |
+9.728 2:38'51.319 |
0.225 | 8 | 8 | |
| 30 | K. BuschRichard Childress Racing | 8 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+9.866 2:38'51.457 |
0.138 | 8 | 7 | |
| 31 | D. HemricKaulig Racing | 31 | Chevrolet | 92 |
+1'36.998 2:40'18.589 |
1'27.132 | 8 | 7 | |
| 32 | J. Montoya23XI Racing | 50 | Toyota | 91 |
+1 Lap 2:38'51.939 |
1 Lap | 6 | 5 | |
| 33 | E. JonesLegacy Motor Club | 43 | Toyota | 90 |
+2 Laps 2:38'52.189 |
1 Lap | 8 | 6 | |
| 34 | W. ByronHendrick Motorsports | 24 | Chevrolet | 90 |
+2 Laps 2:39'00.064 |
7.875 | 7 | 9 | |
| 35 | K. GralaRick Ware Racing | 15 | Ford | 87 |
+5 Laps 2:38'56.091 |
3 Laps | 7 | 2 | |
| 36 | A. AllmendingerKaulig Racing | 13 | Chevrolet | 6 |
+86 Laps 15'53.246 |
81 Laps | 11 | ||
| 37 | R. Stenhouse JrJTG Daugherty Racing | 47 | Chevrolet | 2 |
+90 Laps 5'44.459 |
4 Laps | 5 | 1 | |
| 38 | R. BlaneyTeam Penske | 12 | Ford | 0 |
+92 Laps 2.650 |
2 Laps | 3 | 1 |
