Getty RFK Racing celebrates wins in the Bluegreen Vacation Duels.
Throwback Weekend, an annual celebration of drivers and schemes throughout NASCAR history, takes place on May 6-8 at Darlington Raceway. RFK Racing is using the opportunity to showcase tribute schemes to Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin.
The Cup Series organization partnered with Socios.com, a marketplace for fan tokens, to make the schemes possible. RFK Racing had the $ROUSH fan token holders take part in a poll on the Socios app to determine which two schemes would show up at Darlington Raceway for Throwback Weekend, and the participants opted to throw it back to the 2004 season.
$ROUSH Fan Token holders wound back the clock and used the Socios app to vote for these 2004 designs ahead of the Throwback in May 🗓
…What next? ⏳🔥
The No. 17 of Chris Buescher will have a black and yellow Socios scheme that references Kenseth’s DeWalt scheme. The Cup Series champion took this design to Victory Lane at Rockingham Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 2004 as he tried to defend his title.
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Keselowski, for comparison, will have a blue and white scheme with the Socios.com logo. This design references Martin’s Viagra Ford Taurus that reached Victory Lane at Dover International Speedway during the 2004 Cup Series season.
The Throwback Weekend race at Darlington Raceway will take place on Sunday, May 8, at 3:30 p.m. ET. FS1 will provide coverage as Keselowski, Buescher, and several other drivers run special schemes referencing NASCAR history and some of its biggest drivers.
Keselowski Has Referenced Other NASCAR Legends With Schemes
NEWS: It’s finally here! @Keselowski will run this No. 2 @Miller_Global paint scheme at @TooToughtoTame later this season. It’s a tribute the 1990 design driven by @RustyWallace for car owner Raymond Beadle.
[Get the Diecast]: t.co/JhqRTLRq5f
#TBT #NASCAR #NASCARThrowback
The Gen 7 version of the Martin scheme will only continue Keselowski’s history of highlighting NASCAR legends during Throwback Weekend. One example is when he did so during the 2018 season while driving for Team Penske.
The 2012 Cup Series champion partnered with Miller Lite for Throwback Weekend and ran a Rusty Wallace tribute scheme. This black and gold Ford Fusion featured massive Miller Genuine Draft logos on the sides and hood, as well as gold numbers.
Keselowski headed to the track too tough to tame and turned in a strong performance. He started 13th overall, led 24 laps, and reached Victory Lane after holding off his teammate, Joey Logano. This win was the first of three consecutive for Keselowski and it played a role in him ending the year eighth overall in the championship standings.
Buescher Has Consecutive Strong Performances at Darlington
GettyChris Buescher will pursue another top-10 finish at Darlington Raceway.
When Buescher climbs into the No. 17 for Throwback Weekend, he will try to keep his momentum at Darlington Raceway. He has turned in strong performances recently at The Lady in Black with consecutive top-10 finishes.
The driver of the No. 17 Ford finished ninth at Darlington Raceway during the spring race in 2021. He returned to the track for the Southern 500 on September 5 and worked his way from the 34th position to ninth once again.
Buescher will have the opportunity to continue pursuing top-10 finishes while throwing it back to Kenseth, a driver who posted 13 top-10s at the South Carolina track during his career. Kenseth also reached Victory Lane in 2013 when he won the Southern 500, one of the four Crown Jewel races.
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