"Finish line isn’t straight; genuinely felt bad" - NASCAR fans console Chris Buescher after close Kansas call

RFK Racing driver Chris Buescher came agonizingly close to winning the AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway, only to be denied by Kyle Larson. The Hendrick Motorsports driver snatched the victory with a margin of 0.001 seconds, the closest finish in NASCAR Cup Series history.

The #17 Ford driver started the race in 12th position and rallied to the front making it apparent that he was in contention for the race win. He also made a sensational pass midway through the race, battling five wide for second position.

In the overtime restart, Chris Buescher banged doors with Kyle Larson, as they took the checkered flag side by side. The scoring system initially crowned the #17 RFK Racing driver as the winner with NASCAR later reviewing the video footage to declare Larson as the winner.

The 31-year-old Prosper, Texas native was emotional during the post-race interview as he ran out of words and held back tears, after missing out on a victory by the closest margin the sport had ever seen.

"I don’t know what to say right now, haven’t seen a replay other than just the picture, and I sure can’t see in that picture. That sucks to be that close," he said on a dejected note to Fox Sports.

NASCAR fans expressed sympathy for the RFK Racing driver, with Larson fans also expressing encouraging words for Buescher.

"I’m a Larson fan but during that interview I genuinely felt bad for Buescher," one fan wrote.

The crooked start-finish line also created controversy as fans speculated that Buescher was robbed of the win. However, it was later clarified that the paint laid down on the track doesn't determine the race winner.

"Finish Line isn’t Straight…." another fan wrote.

A third NASCAR fan lauded Buescher for his composure.

"i RARELY feel bad for people, but chris buescher genuinely sounded like he was on the verge of tears that entire post race interview, his day will come soon," the comment read.

There was an outpour of empathy for the RFK Racing driver as NASCAR fans flooded social media with positive messages.

"You gotta admit he was classy, most would be crying," a comment read.

"it. should. have. been. BUESCHER !!!!" a fan reckoned.

"You are an amazing driver Buescher! Go and get a win at Darlington!" another comment read.

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Chris Buescher not upset with Kyle Larson's last-lap tango

The #17 RFK Racing driver is not holding any grudges against race winner Kyle Larson, who banged doors with Buescher twice in the final stretch of the race while racing to the checkered flag.

Chris Buescher took to X (formerly Twitter) to clarify that he held no shade against the #5 Hendrick Motorsports driver, lauding his race craft. He explained that both drivers were going for the win.

"To be clear for y’all… no shade at @KyleLarsonRacin. We were banging doors all the way to the checkered. He’s one heck of a racer, and that was just two drivers going for the trophy" he wrote in a post.

With a second-place finish, Chris Buescher stands 11th in the regular season standings and is 33 points above the cut-off line in the playoff standings.

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