LEFFLER, TEENAGER BUESCHER USE LATE-RACE ADJUSTMENTS TO RALLY FOR SOLID FINISHES IN MILWAUKEE NATIONWIDE RACE

Top 15 finishes have been hard to come by of late for Jason Leffler and his Great Clips/Dollar General/Northeastern Supply Company Toyota race team, but thanks to some late-race adjustments, both Leffler and teenage teammate James Buescher turned the trick in Milwaukee Saturday night.

Leffler, in his #38 Camry, qualified ninth but ran pretty much in the top four positions throughout most of the Camping World RV Rental 250 at the famed Milwaukee Mile oval.

All of the lead-lap cars pitted on lap 151 during the fourth of the race’s seven caution periods, Leffler coming into his pit for tires, fuel and a slight chassis adjustment in fourth place. He exited sixth, and when the race re-started on lap 153, Jason’s Toyota didn’t stick quite as much as he had hoped. His Toyota steadily dropped some positions from there, showing in the 13th position when the event’s final yellow flag waved on lap 205 for debris.

Leffler pitted with all the leaders again for the final time, changing four tires and making another adjustment in an effort to get the car back to where it was during the first 150 laps when the #38 was showing in the top five; running second at one point for a bunch of laps and with a car that appeared capable of challenging the early race leaders in Brad Keselowski, Scott Wimmer and rookie sensation Joey Logano who won his first career race last weekend in just his second start.

Leffler re-started in the same 13th spot in which he was prior to the caution but it took him just three laps to get back into the top 10 where he would finish. It was Jason’s first top 10 effort since the Darlington, SC event on Mother’s Day weekend.

“The car was really good for a time there, and I don’t know if it was some bad adjustments that we made to the car or a set of bad tires, but there was a time there that I just could not get any grip through the corners,” Leffler said. “Thank goodness we were able to get that late caution so we could make a change and put on fresh rubber, because that is what finally got us a top 10 finish,” he added.

Buescher, in just his third start of the season for Braun Racing in the #32 ABF U-Pack Moving/Fraternal Order of Eagles/Dollar General/Northeastern Supply Company Toyota, raced like a veteran in posting his impressive 14th place finish.

Buescher, who started the race in the 24th position after a so-so qualifying effort, ran in the top 15 all night. He actually led the race for a lap under green flag conditions on lap 91 after starting up front following a no-tire pit stop after a caution that flew on lap 89 when the Chevrolet of Travis Kittleson spun. Without the benefit of fresh rubber, the #32 fell victim to all of those cars that did get new tires and dropped back to the 19th when the leaders pitted on that lap 151 caution.

James was able to maintain that position until the final yellow flag waved and the lead lap cars made their final pit stops. He re-started then in the same spot but was able to pass five cars over the remaining 40 laps to earn his 14th place finish.

“The crew did a great job tonight and kept me running in the upper quarter of the field for most of the race,” Buescher said. “It was pretty neat leading the field on that one re-starts, but when you don’t have fresh tires on a flat track like Milwaukee, you’re easy pickens for everyone else who does. I’m really happy with my performance tonight,” Buescher added.

In finally snapping his 3-race slump that featured two DNF’s that knocked him from eighth in the point’s standing to 10th, Leffler may now be able to get back to the way he ran over the 2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series season’s first 12 events that earned five top 10 finishes and one top five.

“Hopefully, the worst is over for us, and I have no plans whatsoever to try and run a Cup car again this year. That was a bad idea and I think hurt our overall team effort,” explained Jason who was called on by HAAS Motorsports to try and qualify and race that team’s #70 Chevrolet in the last three Sprint Cup races.

“This team needs me and I need to dedicate 100% of myself and my effort to this Nationwide Team. I don’t plan to break away again his year so we can get back to racing the way we have over the last three seasons,” added Leffler, who remained tenth in points after Milwaukee but has closed to within nine points of ninth place David Stremme.

Jason will eye another top ten performance next weekend when the Nationwide Series teams return to share the stage with the Sprint Cup teams at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon for a 200-mile test. That race is set to get the green flag at 3:00 p.m. and will be televised nationally by ABC.

Defending Nationwide Series champion Carl Edwards snapped a lengthy losing streak to win the Milwaukee event, coming from the back of the pack to outdistance Logano and current point’s leader Clint Bowyer.

Keselowski dominated the first two-thirds of the race and appeared to be the car to beat until his Chevy got together with Logano’s Toyota on lap 79 as the two battled for the lead. The incident knocked in the left front fender on Keselowski’s Navy-sponsored race car and it was never the same again. Keselowski ended up finishing eighth.