The silver lining in Ford's latest heartbreaking NASCAR loss

Ford’s NASCAR struggles this season are well-documented, as it has failed to win a race across the top three series of NASCAR. After Kansas, Ford is now 0-33 this season, including the Busch Clash and Daytona Duels. 

But Buescher's loss at Kansas — the third loss by a Ford in NASCAR competition by three one- thousandths of a second or less this season — comes with a silver lining. Not only did he put himself in position to win Sunday’s race, but he led 54 laps and earned 16 stage points at Kansas, proving himself to be one of the top drivers throughout the race. 

Ford hasn’t had many drivers be consistently competitive throughout the course of a race this year, and while Buescher did come up short, there’s not much else Buescher could’ve done to keep Larson at bay. 

Buescher’s RFK Racing teammate, Brad Keselowski, recorded two straight runner-up finishes at Texas and Talladega on April 14 and 21, respectively, and with Buescher nearly winning on Sunday, RFK has stepped up to carry the torch for the struggling manufacturer. 

Ford must get a win sooner than later so as to not sound the alarm, but Sunday’s near miss by Buescher is a step in the right direction. If a couple inches were added onto the splitter of their car, it would be celebrating rather than crowding back around the whiteboard.