Buescher back home, 1st win on big Texas track could go long way to NASCAR Truck Series title

FORT WORTH, Texas – James Buescher has won on four different courses at Texas Motor Speedway. Now he's looking for a victory on the main track.

With three races left in the NASCAR Truck Series season, Buescher heads to the 1½-mile high-banked Texas track on Friday night as the points leader.

"I couldn't think of a better time to get a win at this track," Buescher said Thursday.

By finishing sixth at Martinsville last week, Buescher took over the points lead, by 21 over Ty Dillon. Buescher has been sixth or better the last four races.

Buescher, who is from nearby Plano, has won on the dirt track, one-fifth mile track, quarter-mile front-stretch layout and the road course at Texas. Now he's back for his eighth try on the big track, where he has twice been a pole sitter but has finished no better than sixth.

"The biggest difference this time is obviously having the momentum of taking over the points lead and knowing we have to come here and have a good race," he said. "We know that we can lose that points lead as easy as we got it. ... We want to finish strong, make sure we don't give up points and risk giving up the championship."

During the closing laps of the June race at Texas, Buescher and Dillon were running up front and had been side-by-side for several laps before making contact. Dillon appeared to get loose when he tried to make a move around Buescher. Dillon finished seventh, eight spots ahead of Buescher.

"The way we've raced each other since then has been a huge improvement. I definitely was not pleased with the way he raced me in June," Buescher said. "Lately, running on the track, it's been clean racing. I think we became somewhat kind of friends since. ... The way we've raced, it has come a long way."

Buescher was the pole sitter for both races at Texas last year.

In June 2011, he led three times for only eight laps. Then last fall, he was running third late before running out of fuel on a caution that set up a green-white-checkered finish, and ended up 19th.

"We've been in position to win races here," said Buescher, who has a series-high four victories this season. "Talk about last year, the chance to win the race and get my first win. It would have been a cool place to get my first win."