Racing career
Puskarich began competing in the NASCAR Winston West Series in 1974, finishing fifth in his debut at Altamont Speedway; he finished tenth and fourth in his other starts at Clovis Speedway and Ascot Park respectively. He competed full-time in 1975, where in eighteen races, he scored a pole and seven top-tens with a best finish of second at Santa Maria Speedway. He finished fourth in the standings and was awarded Rookie of the Year. The West Series schedule included three combination races, Puskarich's first NASCAR Winston Cup Series starts, where he scored a best finish of twelfth in his debut at Riverside International Raceway.
Puskarich ran eight of thirteen Winston West races in 1976, with his lone top-ten being a fifth place finish at Evergreen Speedway. He finished 27th and 21st in the Riverside combination race and fifteenth in the combination race at Ontario Motor Speedway.
Puskarich attempted twelve of twenty Winston West races in 1977, scoring five top-ten finishes with a best finish of seventh at Ascot Park and Craig Road Speedway. He finished 30th and 28th in the Riverside combination races and failed to qualify for the Ontario combination race. Puskarich also made his USAC Stock Car Series debut at Ontario, finishing 22nd due to overheating issues.
In 1978, Puskarich attempted four races, failing to qualify at Mesa Marin Raceway and Ontario and finishing 31st at Riverside and sixteenth at Sears Point International Raceway; the Riverside and Ontario races were combination races with the Winston Cup Series. He made his second and final USAC Stock Car start at Ontario, finishing last in the 28 car field due to an oil leak after four laps.
Puskarich's lone NASCAR start of 1979 came in the Winston Cup and Winston West season opener at Riverside, where he finished 28th. He would run his second and final full-time Winston West season in 1980, where he scored one top-ten, a tenth place finish in a standalone race at Ontario, in eleven races. He finished seventh in the standings. Puskarich finished nineteenth and seventeenth in the Riverside combination races and last in 42nd due to engine issues after two laps in the Ontario combination race.
In 1981, Puskarich ran ten of fourteen Winston West races, tying his career best finish of second at Sears Point, his only top-ten of the season. There were three Riverside combination races in 1981, where Puskarich finished 32nd, seventeenth, and 21st. His final Winston West season was 1982, where he scored three top-tens with a best finish of eighth at All American Speedway. In his final Winston Cup start, a combination race at Riverside, he finished twentieth.
After not making any NASCAR attempts in 1983, Puskarich made a final attempt at Riverside in 1984, failing to qualify.
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