Chris Buescher delivers a "biased" take on The Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium versus LA Coliseum

Chris Buescher, driver of the No. 17 RFK Racing Ford Mustang in the NASCAR Cup Series, shared his opinion on the Bowman Gray Stadium after the season-opening exhibition race, the Cook Out Clash. NASCAR returned to its roots at Bowman Gray after 54 years, which means that for many drivers, this was their first time racing at this quarter-mile oval circuit.

Buescher secured a front-row starting spot for the Clash on Sunday after winning the intense 25-lap second Heat race on Saturday, which he started from pole position. However, the race didn't go as planned for the RFK Racing driver, as he fell in multiple positions. He eventually finished the race in tenth place.

After the race, motorsport journalist Matt Weaver spoke with Buescher and asked him about his racing experience at Bowman Gray, as compared to the LA Coliseum.

"Yeah, this one races like a racetrack. In LA, I don't know if it's just the kerbs, straightaways, or what, and I am biased but I like this place. It was fun racing here, it was rough at times, but it was fun racing, so yeah, much better here," Buescher told Weaver.

And it's no surprise that Chris Buescher likes Bowman Gray more than the LA Coliseum. This was the first time he qualified for the main event of the exhibition race, having failed to make the starting grid in the previous three events held in LA.

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Chris Buescher talks about the atmosphere at the Madhouse

While the premier NASCAR Series has not raced at the Bowman Gray Stadium in over half a century, plenty of other divisions have held their events here. In fact, it is known as NASCAR's longest-running weekly race track.

However, anyone who has driven around here has learned that disaster is never far away on this quarter-mile track. Chris Buescher also learned the very same thing in his first outing.

The cramped nature of the circuit, coupled with drivers willing to do anything to win the race, and a crowd that was not afraid to rage out over the racing, made the stadium quickly gain the title of ‘Madhouse’. The name has stuck ever since.

Bowman Gray's promoter, Gray Garrison, once said that the events that took place at the stadium were “part racing, part religion, and part wrestling,” as reported by FOX 8 in 2014.

Speaking to Weaver about the atmosphere at the track and the unique experience offered by the Bowman Gray Stadium, Chris Buescher said:

"We knew that it was going to be here, there's no question about that. Seen that from the weekend shows here, seen it all through the Madhouse production so we knew what we were coming into and fans didn't disappoint us for sure."

Other drivers like Kyle Larson, who have raced on this track before, felt that NASCAR made the right decision to come back to this track and should continue to explore more venues for the season-opening exhibition race.