XFINITY champ Chris Buescher to race full time in Sprint Cup
Newly crowned NASCAR XFINITY Series champion Chris Buescher is headed for a full-time Sprint Cup Series ride in 2016.
Buescher, who won the 2015 title in NASCAR's No. 2 division for Roush Fenway Racing, will compete full time for Front Row Motorsports in the organization's No. 34 Ford as part of an "enhanced technical alliance" between the two Ford organizations.
In making the announcement on Thursday morning, Roush Fenway said it will provide Front Row with engineering, equipment and driver support in 2016.
Buescher's team will also receive pit support from Roush Fenway.
“We are thrilled to announce this alliance,” said Roush Fenway president Steve Newmark in a team release. “Not only will it foster increased communication within the Ford camp, it will allow our newest champion Chris Buescher to continue to hone his skills with substantial seat time behind the wheel in the Sprint Cup Series in top-grade equipment.
“We look forward to working more closely with Front Row on many levels and we believe it is a relationship that will be mutually beneficial for both parties,” added Newmark.
Buescher, in only his second full season of NASCAR competition, captured the 2015 XFINITY Series championship for Roush Fenway on the strength of wins at Iowa and Dover.
The 23-year-old native of Prosper, Texas, made six Sprint Cup starts this past season for the Bob Jenkins-owned Front Row team in addition to running the full XFINITY schedule for Roush Fenway.
“We’ve grown a lot and accomplished a lot as an organization in our six years of full-time Sprint Cup racing, and I’m proud of our progress,” Jenkins said in a statement. “We’re ready for the next step, and this partnership with Roush Fenway Racing is going to take us there. Chris Buescher is a champion, and he’s a driver that we’ve worked with already and have great respect for, so he’s the perfect guy to bring into our lineup.”
Plans for Front Row Motorsports’ second 2016 Sprint Cup entry will be announced at a later date.
