By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor
JOLIET, Ill. — With a special decal honoring the late Jason Johnson – who died following a crash in last Saturday’s World of Outlaws race at Beaver Dam Raceway – on his No. 60 Ford’s right-side name plate, dirt graduate Chase Briscoe soared off to a career-best NASCAR XFINITY Series finish at Chicagoland Speedway.
Briscoe kept his Roush Fenway Racing (RFR) machine clean, powered through the summer heat and surged late to claim a ninth-place result in Saturday’s Overton’s 300.
Afterwards the Hoosier took a moment to send well wishes to the Johnson family.
“Obviously I’m thinking of the entire Johnson family – Bobbi (wife) and Jaxx (son),” Briscoe told Kickin’ the Tires. “It’s a really unfortunate circumstance, and my thoughts and prayers go out to them.
“It was definitely an honor to have Jason on the car for our first top 10. We ran the top pretty much all day, and I think that’s what Jason would have done, too. It was an honor to pay tribute to him.”
Making his ninth-career start for RFR, Briscoe entered Saturday’s 300-miler quietly after a 17th-place qualifying run. He didn’t score points in either of the race’s two stages, but Briscoe kept himself in contention for a top 10 by staying on the lead lap through the race’s lengthy opening green-flag runs.
When the caution flag flew for debris on Lap 114, Briscoe’s No. 60 team elected to leave him on-track with 15-lap older tires as the rest of the field descended to pit road. This enabled the 23-year-old to lead laps for the second time in his young career, and though he quickly lost the lead on the ensuing restart, Briscoe was able to maintain a position inside of the top 15.
The race went caution-free from that moment until the checkered flag flew on Lap 120, helping Briscoe maintain his track position. He fell out of the top 10 before the last set of pit stops, but was able to methodically drive his way to ninth before the race ended.
Briscoe thought he could have finished better given the opportunity. “We were really actually pretty good with 15-lap older tires, we held out own,” he said said. “There at the end I felt like we were a top-three car. We just really didn’t ever have any track position.”
But even without a late caution to help him move forward, Briscoe has overjoyed to leave Chicagoland with a top 10 result.
“To be able to run my first top 10 in a race with five Cup guys in it is something to really be proud of,” he said. “I’m proud of these guys and looking forward to getting to Iowa Speedway.”
Briscoe was anticipated to make two more starts on the day, competing in sprint car races at nearby Route 66 Raceway. But after a hot, arduous race, the Ford prospect thought better of the decision.
“Definitely the most physical race I’ve ever been a part of,” he said.. “I was supposed to go run two more races tonight over at the sprint car track. I don’t think I’m going to do that. It sounded like a great idea before I knew it was going to be 110 degrees.”
His best finish in hand, Briscoe will wait for his RFR return. His next start with RFR will come at Iowa – a track he believes suits him well.
“I feel like Chicago’s my second-best track, and I feel like Iowa’s my best,” Briscoe said. “We’ve continued to make gains on the car, and it has me really looking forward to it. I’m proud of these guys and looking forward to getting to Iowa.”