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Tag: Alex Bowman

  • Hot 20 – As Newman’s job just got tougher, could we give Ken Squier his old job back?

    Hot 20 – As Newman’s job just got tougher, could we give Ken Squier his old job back?

    A funny thing happened on the way to Richmond. Ryan Newman finished eighth at Darlington, got to within seven points of Jamie McMurray in the battle for the final Chase place, and then it hit the fan. Actually, it was not very amusing at all as his car failed post-race inspection, and that came with a 15 point penalty. Newman has to make up a 22 point deficit on McMurray, hope nobody below him in the standings wins this weekend, or just win the thing himself to make it. With a contract coming due and the owner’s other grandson ready to move up, this is the time for the Rocket to light the fuse.

    Kyle Larson‘s third place finish at Darlington was nice, but he also got tagged 15 points for failing the post-race checkup. However, he loses not a step in the standings and his win leaves him somewhat immune. As for the cash donations, Newman’s crew chief Luke Lambert was fined $25,000, while Chad Johnston, Larson’s bench boss, was fined $22,500. Would it not be lovely if you could fine your mechanic’s ass if he failed to fix your car the first time? Your doctor? How about politicians? We may be on to something here.

    There is one other scenario we have not mentioned. If Chris Buescher has a bad day and falls out of the Top 30, it is “hello Newman,” welcome to the Chase.

    Eleven races to go, and with Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the shelf until the Daytona 500, 23-year-old Alex Bowman will have a dream ride for eight of the remaining contests this season. It will be a good test for the driver who spent the past two seasons behind the wheel for BK Racing and Tommy Baldwin. Neither outfit has yet to win a race, boast just two Top Fives and six Top Tens in a combined 781 attempts. Bowman will end the season driving the good stuff. Jeff Gordon, meanwhile, finally retires again, after he completes Richmond, Dover, and Martinsville. Sixteen of his 93 career victories came at those venues, including nine coming at the paper-clip.

    What driver has the most identifiable car in NASCAR, even to the non-fan? Paul Menard. His name is all over it.

    Danny Gallivan, Vin Scully, Ken Squier. If you want to become a legendary hockey, baseball, or racing announcer, they are the prototypes to build upon After just a couple of minutes to get into the swing of things at Darlington, the 81-year-old Squier allowed us to once again hear how it should be done. These gentlemen were poets who were able to describe, inform, entertain, and allow us to witness the action simply through the sound of their voice. To actually see it on television was a bonus, almost an unnecessary one. Squier ended his term providing the lap-by-lap commentary in 1997, though we have been blessed by special appearances, as we were last Sunday. Gallivan retired in 1984 after 32 years calling the action for the Montreal Canadiens, passing away in 1993. The 88-year old Scully is presently bringing his 67-year career behind the Dodger microphone to a close. They remain incomparable and irreplaceable.

    Richmond has been part of the NASCAR scene since 1950, and Saturday the race will feature eight present and former Cup champions. Twenty-six of those 40 drivers have combined for 530 Cup victories, and while 12 have locked in their invite to the Chase, another 20 entered have a mathematical shot at one of the four remaining positions.

    That includes all of our Hot 20 heading into Richmond.

    1. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 4 WINS (797 Pts)
    Loose wheel, loose wheel, he thought he had Harvick’s crew pitting him for real.

    2. KYLE BUSCH – 4 WINS (727 Pts)
    Six drivers under the age of 25 have driven for him in the truck series this season.

    3. KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS (840 Pts)
    Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses, and let them try to pit my car.

    4. CARL EDWARDS – 2 WINS (746 Pts)
    First last lap pass for the win at Richmond in the spring, why not the fall?

    5. DENNY HAMLIN – 2 WINS (729 Pts)
    If he ran NASCAR, would shorten the season and the World 600. Good thing he doesn’t.

    6. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 2 WINS (696 Pts)
    Interested in just winning the Memorial and Labor Day weekend classics this season.

    7. MATT KENSETH – 2 WINS (669 Pts)
    Without Matt, Jim might have never worked at Dunder Mifflin or met Pam or Michael Scott.

    8. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2 WINS (656 Pts)
    Jimmie won twice, had Top 10s in five of the seven events to open the season. It’s been a while.

    9. JOEY LOGANO – 1 WIN (752 Pts)
    With Junior out, does this give Joey a shot at being NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver?

    10. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN (728 Pts)
    Felt kind of flat at Darlington. Menard’s flat, to be specific.

    11. KYLE LARSON – 1 WIN (606 Pts)
    Finally, he has two Top Fives in a row.

    12. TONY STEWART – 1 WIN (426 Pts)
    What happened to Brian Scott at Darlington? Why, he wrecked, of course.

    13. CHRIS BUESCHER – 1 WIN (358 Pts)
    Staying within 10 of Ragan next week would be good, keeping him in the rearview, even better.

    14. CHASE ELLIOTT – 659 POINTS
    Finish 17th or better and he is off to the ball.

    15. AUSTIN DILLON – 651 POINTS
    Menard has a sponsor, Dillon has a grandfather, and Newman needs the Chase.

    16. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 642 POINTS
    Could have been 30 points up if not for that late Darlington penalty.

    17. RYAN NEWMAN – 620 POINTS
    Penalty cripples his Chase bid, while the other Dillon has designs on his ride.

    18. KASEY KAHNE – 598 POINTS
    At least Junior has an excuse for not making the Chase.

    19. RYAN BLANEY – 573 POINTS
    No gloves, no problem, but less money in your pocket.

    20. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 562 POINTS
    Mr. Tickles? Maybe it was girlfriend Tara who named the cat.

  • McMurray: ‘Everyone wants the chance to get in a really good car and Alex has done…a phenomenal job’

    McMurray: ‘Everyone wants the chance to get in a really good car and Alex has done…a phenomenal job’

    DARLINGTON, S.C. — Speaking from experience as having started as a substitute driver, Jamie McMurray said every driver “wants the chance to get in a really good car” and that Alex Bowman is doing “a phenomenal job.”

    Talking to the media during a teleconference on Friday morning, the driver of the No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was asked what a driver like Bowman is going through in a substitute role for a big name driver such as Dale Earnhardt Jr.

    “Well, if you are a driver that is trying to make it in the sport there is no better position to be put in than to get in a car like that, because you know that you have an opportunity, maybe not to win, but you are in a car that is capable of winning and running up front and showing guys what you can do if you are in the right equipment,” McMurray said.

    “Everyone wants the chance to get in a really good car and Alex has done, I think, a phenomenal job at jumping right in and having a lot of speed and racing well. The flip side of that is if you get in that car and you don’t run well, then you lose your opportunity at maybe ever getting that shot again. I think that Alex has, even though he hasn’t pulled off a win, he has had really good speed and I think to me what sticks out the most is he is not even really in a car every week. If you were in a truck every week or a XFINITY car week in and week out and then you were filling in that would be one thing. But he hasn’t really been racing that much this year.

    “To jump in and do what he has done at a track like Loudon which is one style or racing and then to go to a place like Michigan, that is completely different he has just done an awesome job. I know that probably for him the phone is not ringing as much as he wants it to, but he is going to get an opportunity because to me he has really shown that he is capable of it.”

    McMurray is no stranger to the role of substitute driver. He came into the Sprint Cup Series as a substitute driver in the then No. 40 Dodge for Ganassi Racing after Sterling Marlin broke his neck in a wreck at Kansas Speedway in a season where he was near the top of the points standings for most of the season. He made his debut with a 26th place finish at Talladega Superspeedway. In his second career start the very next week, McMurray led a race high of 96 laps on his way to scoring his first career victory in Cup at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

    “I had raced my whole truck and Busch Series at the time, in cars that I think my Busch car had won like one or two races in seven or eight years,” he said. “It wasn’t necessarily a winning car, and then all of a sudden I got in Sterling’s car that had I think won a couple of races earlier that year and it had led the points up to that point, it was a really good car. So, there is a lot of pressure on you to run well because you know that you are in a car that is capable of winning. So, really nervous and then once we won in Charlotte it was like super relieving because not only is that a confidence builder for you, but I think in all the people that are around you.”

  • Dale Earnhardt Jr. Out for the Rest of the 2016 Season

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. Out for the Rest of the 2016 Season

    DARLINGTON, S.C. — Dale Earnhardt Jr. won’t return to the driver’s seat for the remainder of 2016.

    Hendrick Motorsports announced today that the driver of the No. 88 HMS Chevrolet has not been medically cleared to compete for the rest of the 2016 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

    Earnhardt has sat out the last six races after being diagnosed with symptoms of a concussion that his doctors say were triggered by his wreck at Michigan in June. He’s been undergoing regular evaluation at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Sports Medicine Concussion Program under the direction of Dr. Micky Collins and with Charlotte neurosurgeon Dr. Jerry Petty.

    “I wish I could return to the No. 88 team this season,” Earnhardt said. “To say I’m disappointed doesn’t begin to describe how I feel, but I know this is the right thing for my long-term health and career. I’m 100 percent focused on my recovery, and I will continue to follow everything the doctors tell me. They’re seeing good progress in my test results, and I’m feeling that progress physically. I plan to be healthy and ready to compete at Daytona in February. I’m working toward that.”

    Earnhardt also mentioned that he’s received overwhelming support from both inside and outside the Hendrick organization.

    “The support from both inside and outside the race team has been overwhelming. Everyone has been so encouraging and positive, from my teammates and sponsors to my family, friends and fans. It’s motivating and humbling at the same time.”

    Team owner Rick Hendrick said he knows “how hard Dale has worked and how frustrating this is for him. He wants to be back, and we want him back, but we want it to be for the long haul. We’ve had incredible support from everyone involved with the team, including all of our sponsors. They’ve put Dale’s health first every step of the way.”

    Alex Bowman and Jeff Gordon will continue to drive the No. 88 Chevrolet for the remainder of the season as they’ve been doing for the last six races.

    Hendrick Motorsports also released their driver schedule for the 88 car detailing which race will feature which driver. Gordon will drive the car in four of the final 12 races (Darlington, Richmond, Dover and Martinsville). Bowman will pilot the car in the other eight (Chicagoland, Loudon, Charlotte, Kansas, Talladega, Texas, Phoenix and Homestead).

    “Jeff and Alex will give us a great opportunity over the rest of the season,” Hendrick added. “Jeff is one of the best of all time and knows our system. He brings things to the table that no one else can. Alex is a young driver with a lot of talent, and he will give us a fresh perspective. We know they’re not only capable of running up front and giving us a chance to win, but they’ll help us get better.”

  • Hot 20 – Michigan is a track for legends, but no Junior to be seen as Buescher gets Ford support

    Hot 20 – Michigan is a track for legends, but no Junior to be seen as Buescher gets Ford support

    Michigan. A big track, a fast track. Sadly, not exactly a legacy event, like winning at Daytona or Bristol or Talladega or Indianapolis or Darlington or either road course.

    What it is, is a track where legends have celebrated since 1969. In fact, David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, Bill Elliott, Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Richard Petty, Dale Jarrett, and Bobby Allison have combined for 46 victories there. That is a lot of suds for a lot of Hall of Famers.

    Greg Biffle is the only four-time winner not in yet. In fact, he needs to make it five just to make the Chase this year. Same goes for teammates Trevor Bayne and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. The only driver at the big boy table sitting in a Chase place at present is Chris Buescher. He and crew chief Bob Osborne now attend the Jack Roush organizational meetings as Ford desires to have one of their boys succeed. Instead of leasing older engines and used bodies, the manufacturer wants to see Bob Jenkins compete in the best Roush has to offer. He might be a step-son, but right now he is Ford’s favorite son.

    Being a France has meant running the show, not being the show. At least, until last week at Bristol when Ben Kennedy won the Wednesday night truck event. The 24-year old is the son of Lesa France Kennedy, the daughter of Bill France Jr.

    Being Dale Earnhardt Jr. has delivered some terrific highs and tragic lows. His 2016 Chase hopes are down to winning at Richmond, but maybe his best health hopes are to take it easy until he is truly good to go. Alex Bowman returns to the seat of the “88″ this weekend, with Jeff Gordon expected to be back for Darlington.

    Kurt Busch ran the opening 6273 laps of the 2016 season, a streak that came to an end 372 laps into Sunday’s Bristol affair. While vying for the lead he came into contact with Brad Keselowski, to ruin the day for them both. If one has to go out, might as well do it with all guns blazing. It beats fading away with a whimper.

    Anyone remember the XFINITY or the Camping World Truck Series? If you do, and if you are 12 and younger, you get to go to all those races for free next season. What a wonderful way to introduce young fans to the sport. What a wonderful way of trying to get somebody to attend those races. Nobody else is. They do not really have much to lose. An empty seat buys nothing and appreciates nothing. This move is better than nothing.

    This is the final year of the Sprint Cup. Soon, it will be parked in the garage alongside the Nextel Cup, the Winston Cup, and the Grand National and Strictly Stock monikers. I joked that the GoBowling.com 400 race in Kansas could have had a worse name, then one wag commented “Don’t diss SpongeBob. That might be next year’s Cup sponsor.” Good Lord, he might be right!

    Heading into Michigan, here is a look at our QuikTrip, Auto Club, Food City, Bass Pro Shops, Coca-Cola, Bank of America, MyAFibStory.com, AAA, Ford EcoBoost, GoBowling.com, Hollywood Casino, Quaker State, Kobalt, STP, Goody’s, FireKeepers Casino, Pure Michigan, Camping World, Good Sam, Xalta, Toyota Owners, Federated Auto Parts, Save Mart, GEICO, Duck Commander, Cheez-It Hot 20.

    Sadly, despite these name mentions, I get not a dime. I obviously need a foundation.
    1. BRAD KESELOWSKI – 4 WINS (735 Pts)
    So ends Kurt’s streak. Mission accomplished.

    2. KYLE BUSCH – 4 WINS (674 Pts)
    Last week Kyle’s car was dying. All Allgaier did was put it out of its misery.

    3. KEVIN HARVICK – 2 WINS (762 Pts)
    Not the most wins, but probably the best damn car week in and week out.

    4. CARL EDWARDS – 2 WINS (689 Pts)
    Having fun and thinking a third beer bath at Michigan is in order.

    5. DENNY HAMLIN – 2 WINS (659 Pts)
    Good finish last week and with the boss talking an extension, things are good for the Pied Piper.

    6. JIMMIE JOHNSON – 2 WINS (612 Pts)
    If the sticky stuff worked at Bristol, why not pine tar the rest of the tracks?

    7. MATT KENSETH – 2 WINS (604 Pts)
    Drive well, make the Chase, but be considered an old fart and one’s job could be in jeopardy.

    8. KURT BUSCH – 1 WIN (692 Pts)
    So, that is what a garage looks like.

    9. JOEY LOGANO – 1 WIN (684 Pts)
    Since with Penske, has never finished here outside the Top Ten…and won in the spring.

    10. MARTIN TRUEX JR. – 1 WIN (630 Pts)
    His crew chief is Canadian, eh?

    11. TONY STEWART – 1 WIN (400 Pts)
    Tony is a big fan of virtual reality. Nothing gets broken.

    12. CHRIS BUESCHER – 1 WIN (328 Pts)
    All of a sudden, he is feeling the love from Ford.

    13. AUSTIN DILLON – 596 POINTS
    A Top Five last Sunday was more than welcome.

    14. CHASE ELLIOTT – 588 POINTS
    If you are surprised he is where he is, say his name slowly. That was our first hint.

    15. JAMIE MCMURRAY – 583 POINTS
    At Darlington, he is wearing the former colors of an older Elliott.

    16. RYAN NEWMAN – 576 POINTS
    He does not need to make the Chase to keep his job. Who am I kidding? Damn right he does.

    17. TREVOR BAYNE – 541 POINTS
    Crew chief Matt Puccia has won twice before in Ford country…with Greg Biffle.

    18. KYLE LARSON – 537 POINTS
    Sunday sure sucked. Maybe it is time for that first career win.

    19. KASEY KAHNE – 537 POINTS
    With Danica buried deep, it appears NASCAR’s two prettiest will both miss the Chase.

    20. A.J. ALLMENDINGER – 518 POINTS
    Top Ten last Sunday, but needs a Top One this time out.

  • Dale Jr. out for Michigan and Darlington

    Dale Jr. out for Michigan and Darlington

    Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be out for another two weeks as he continues to battle with the effects of his latest concussion.

    Hendrick Motorsports announced today that the driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet will be out of the car for this weekend’s Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway and the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway after undergoing further evaluations today at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Sports Medicine Concussion Program.

    Alex Bowman will drive in his place this weekend at Michigan and Jeff Gordon will drive in his place next weekend at Darlington.

    Earnhardt has been out of the car in the days following the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway when he was diagnosed with symptoms of a concussion. Since then, he’s reported trouble with balance and severe headaches.

    “We know how hard Dale is working to get back,” said Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports. “He’s following what the doctors are saying, to the letter, and doing exactly what he needs to do. Everyone wants to see him in a race car, but his health is first and foremost. We’re behind him.”

    In the time he’s sat out, Earnhardt has dropped from 12th to 21st in points.

  • Jeff Gordon: ‘I will be here as long as they need me’

    Jeff Gordon: ‘I will be here as long as they need me’

    Jeff Gordon says he “will be here as long as they need me” for Dale Earnhardt Jr.

    Speaking in his weekly media availability at Pocono Raceway, the substitute driver of the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet was asked how long he’s prepared to fill in for Earnhardt and if there’s a plan in place for next week at Watkins Glen International.

    “Well, we have to cross that bridge when we get there. It seems like… it was great last Friday to see him (Dale Earnhardt Jr.) say ‘hey I feel good today and made some progress.’ We want to just keep going with how he is feeling.  The doctors are evaluating.  I’m not speculating anything at this time.”

    Earnhardt has been sidelined with concussion-like symptoms since the week leading into the New Hampshire 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Last Friday, he took to Twitter to give an update on his status, saying “Today is the 1st day in many that I sensed improvement. Seen small gains during my physical therapy as well. Light at the end of the tunnel.”

    During his absence, his ride has been driven by Alex Bowman at Loudon and Gordon at Indianapolis. Both Earnhardt and Gordon praised Bowman for his drive at Loudon.

    “The result will not show what a great job and the gang did this weekend. Proud of them guys,” Earnhardt said on Twitter following the race at New Hampshire.

    “I thought Alex Bowman did an excellent job at New Hampshire,” Gordon said. “I tell you after going through what I went through at Indy I have a much greater appreciation for him because that was one of the toughest things I ever did. Not just getting in the race car after eight months, but trying to fill-in for Dale Earnhardt, Jr. knowing the kind of attention that it gets. My heart was beating out of my chest because of the pressure and the eyes that were on you as much as just not being in the car. Great job to Alex.”

    He described his role as “a balance between trying to make this transition. First of all, you want Dale to have the comfort of knowing that somebody is there for him. He doesn’t have to worry about that aspect of it through this process. Just get well at the pace that is the right pace to do it. So, nobody is putting any pressure or time frame on that. He may be putting that on himself more than anybody else. Then there is the side of who is the best person to be in the car to get the most points. And then there is the sponsorship side of it as well. So far from what Rick (Hendrick) is telling me that seems to be me. That is why I was at Indy and that is why I’m here.”

  • The Final Word – Even when not at the track, Earnhardt is the story, be it last week or this one

    The Final Word – Even when not at the track, Earnhardt is the story, be it last week or this one

    They had a race and Dale Earnhardt Jr. was not in it. Why bother? Should this not have been a day of universal sobbing, hand wringing, and “woe is me?” Of course, it should have been, but there was a race to be run in New Hampshire.

    Instead of Junior, 23-year-old Alex Bowman got the best seat of his 72-race Cup career. Would the car make the difference? It appeared that way until a tire made the difference and sent him into the wall. A possible Top Ten wound up 26th, but the young man got to show that he appears to have the right stuff.

    At almost the same time as Bowman’s misadventure, Chase Elliott had a left front go down to help ruin his day. Elliott has the right stuff, but it is points he could use and 34th does not award too many of them. Still, with a pad of more than 50 points to the good, the 20-year-old has nothing to worry about.

    A late game of billiards was not helpful to a pair on the outside but seeking a place on the inside. Ryan Newman touched Carl Edwards who clipped Kasey Kahne who then turned Kyle Larson. While Larson recovered to salvage 17th, Kahne was left in 25th. With Earnhardt sitting out due to his concussion issues, it was time to make hay. Instead, it rained on some. Junior sits it out and still sits in the final Chase spot, 14 points better than Trevor Bayne, who was 23rd on Sunday, with Ryan Blaney, Kahne, and Larson with even more work to do in Indianapolis if they hope to break some hearts.

    We said a star would win in the sunshine and Matt Kenseth did just that with his third at Loudon and second on the season. It could have been won by Martin Truex Jr. He was solid, dueling with Kyle Busch much of the way. That is, until, his shifter snapped. It is pretty tough to set sail stuck in fourth gear. That left him in 16th, while Busch faded to wind up eighth.

    As expected, the likes of Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick recorded Top Fives. It might have been somewhat surprising to see Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle do the same. It does not change things for anybody, with Logano, Harvick, and even Stewart pretty much locked in, while Biffle needs a win to advance.

    Heading to Indianapolis, the big story will be Junior. Does he return, or might Jeff Gordon step back out of retirement to fill the seat? If Junior remains on the sidelines, who will take advantage of his absence to grab hold of that final Chase place? We should know by Wednesday who is behind the wheel. As for June Bug, his mind is as sharp as a tack but has balance issues and some nausea. He also is not going to rush things. It would be nice to see him back soon, to make the Chase, but there are more important factors at play just now.

  • Bowman’s Loudon Performance Proof of Driver Talent

    Bowman’s Loudon Performance Proof of Driver Talent

    It’s an unspoken opinion among many NASCAR pundits and competitors: Alex Bowman is a talented, capable driver. Granted, there’s been an absence of trophies in his record, with a 13th-place at Daytona in 2014 being his career-best finish. But with the right equipment, Bowman could very well pull off some strong performances.

    Case in point, Sunday at Loudon. Subbing for Dale Earnhardt Jr., Bowman posted a 20th-place qualifying effort and marched his way steadily to the front. Before tangling with Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott, Bowman had reached the top-10 in the No. 88 and was in position to take a top-five spot at race’s end. The record books will show a 26th-place finish, which is pretty standard for Bowman’s Sprint Cup efforts. What the record books won’t show is how well he was performing beforehand.

    Bowman has had a NASCAR career built around subpar equipment and lesser-funded teams. So by driving the No. 88 for JR Motorsports in the XFINITY Series, Bowman’s talents have been on full display in 2016, as he has scored a pole, two top-fives and five top-10s in five starts. It hasn’t been a fluke at all; Bowman is an excellent driver in need of a full-time ride, especially with JRM. If that’s accomplished, then wins and title runs would be within grasp for that organization.

    So look more into Bowman’s performance on Sunday. He ran better than he ever had in his Sprint Cup career and was on pace for a career-best day. Even with the accident, his race was something for other team owners to look at and see that Bowman holds a lot of untapped potential. His XFINITY efforts this season have backed that up.

    Bowman can put a car in the top-10 if he has the right equipment. He’s very good about taking care of his equipment and has the right amount of discipline to not get himself into a situation that he can’t get out of. Put him on a good car with a team that can be built around him. He’ll be a contender in no time.

     

  • Cut Tire Ends Impressive Run for Bowman

    Cut Tire Ends Impressive Run for Bowman

    Alex Bowman surprised a lot of people running in the top-10 most of the back half of the Sprint Cup race at New Hampshire before a tire blowout in the closing laps relegated him to a back half finish in his substitute drive for the injured Dale Earnhardt Jr.

    With 29 laps to go, Alex Bowman was running eighth, but contact on pit road with Carl Edwards and further contact with Kurt Busch caused a tire rub on his left-rear that resulted in a blowout and contacting the wall on the frontstretch going into Turn 1.

    “I think the No. 19 was backing up because he was blocked in as I was leaving the pit box,” Bowman said of what he thought led to his tire going down. “My left-rear hit his right-rear as I was leaving.  It caved it in enough, we thought we would be fine, but obviously, when I got into the No. 41 it was already going down. I got really loose, got up the race track and got into him. I hate that for Kurt. Obviously, just got loose had a tire going down and then it went down at about the start/finish line, I just tried to hang on to it. It is really unfortunate. They knew we were here for sure and I had a blast.”

    Bowman was chosen to drive the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on Thursday after Earnhardt was declared medically unclear to race this weekend with symptoms of a concussion.

    “When I got the call I’m like, ‘Oh, Loudon? Really? Okay, well, I’ll try,’” he said. “And they were so welcoming. Such great people to get to work with. Greg (Ives) and all the guys. I had so much fun working with everybody. And I’ve got to thank Mr. ‘H’, too; it was just an absolute blast. I was off a little bit in practice and qualifying, so I feel like I got my act together for the race and it definitely showed.”

    The lackluster finish didn’t stop him from saying the experience “was amazing. I can’t thank Hendrick Motorsports and all these guys enough. They took me to my worst race track by far and made me look good. I just have to thank Mr. H. I had such an amazing time. Everybody, Greg (Ives, crew chief) and all the guys were so welcoming.”

    “I hate the circumstances and really hope Dale is feeling well, but I had so much fun today.  Obviously, I hate that we didn’t get the finish we deserve, but I’ve raced with a lot of these guys for a long time, I raced around them (but) I’ve never got to actually race with guys like Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, all those guys.  I had a lot of fun passing really good cars. Just really thankful for Nationwide and all of Hendrick Motorsports for letting me be here.”

    Because Earnhardt didn’t start the race, he didn’t collect points for Bowman’s 26th-place finish. His absence dropped him to 15th in points at the Chase cutoff heading to Indianapolis.

  • Finley Factor: Media Week Thoughts

    Finley Factor: Media Week Thoughts

    Instead of focusing on one big story, today I’m going to tackle five of the bigger stories coming out of last week’s media conferences and interviews.

    Tony Stewart criticizes Brian France for not being around often

    On SirusXM Speedway last week, Tony Stewart commented that Brian France is never around and that he wants to see him be more active. Tony is right on the ball with these comments. The Frances, both Bill and Bill Jr., were very common around the garage area. Brian wouldn’t be caught dead near it. It kind of reminds me of what happened at Dale Earnhardt Incorporated in its last few years of existence, when Teresa Earnhardt wasn’t around and team performance dropped off greatly. With everything Brian France has done in the last 12 years, probably more than his father did in his 30 years in ownership, it’s strange not to see him around. I was at Richmond in the fall of last year and it seemed crazy to me that France was nowhere to be seen for the start of the second season of what will ultimately be his legacy (The 16 driver Chase format). When introducing such wild changes to a sport or team, you need to be there and show your employees or players that you care. If you don’t, why should they?

    Denny Hamlin’s Knee Still Not Healed

    After tearing his ACL playing basketball last season, Hamlin told USA Today that he still is only “about 50 percent” but that he’s fine to get back in the car. You can say a lot about Denny Hamlin, but you have to give the Virginian credit; he has shown time and time again that he doesn’t slow down when he gets injured. Just look at Martinsville in 2010, where he won with the same exact injury before getting surgery. He’ll be fine this year.

    Tommy Baldwin Racing replaces Alex Bowman, Bowman finds out on Twitter

    Where to begin with this. You just can’t do this in today’s world without it completely backfiring on you. It would have been perfectly fine had Baldwin informed Mr. Bowman a month or even a week ago that he was out of a job. It’s not perfectly fine to make a deal on your new driver on Tuesday, tell your current driver on Wednesday night everything is fine, then officially announce the change Thursday. And then, just to make things even better, Baldwin doesn’t even really apologize to Bowman in their third press release of the week. Instead, he takes a shot at the media for leaking the story out before he could inform Bowman. Mind you, Baldwin didn’t need to announce his driver change almost as soon as the news leaked; look at how long it took a couple of years ago for Carl Edwards to announce his move to JGR after it leaked out online. Plenty of people want to root for the underdog like Baldwin’s team. But a move like this could kill any good feelings race fans may have had for TBR, and it’s because of such an easy thing to prevent.

    XFINITY and Camping World Truck Series Chases

    It’s about time. It has always been strange that the XFINITY and Truck series determine their champions in a different way from the Cup Series. Hopefully, in 2017, the Homestead ban extends to the entire chase period. It’s understandable NASCAR might have been squeamish about cutting such a large portion of the schedule out from Cup Series drivers on relatively short notice.

    Caution Clock in the Truck Series

    Probably the most controversial new change announced this season is the addition of the caution clock in the Truck Series, where every 20 minutes of green flag racing a competition caution will come out. It’s certainly controversial and definitely the brainchild of Brian France.

    Why is it happening? Because it’s a test to see if this can work and bring in the fan base NASCAR has been marketing to; the young millennials. The NASCAR audience is the oldest in sports today, according to just about every study done in the past five years. NASCAR just hasn’t attracted young fans since the sport was in its late 1990s boom period, and that’s a huge problem for advertisers/sponsors craving the 18-49 demo. And it’s not for lack of trying; just look at Fox Sport’s Daytona Day commercial aired this past weekend. Not one person among the hundreds of people in that ad looked above 30.

    You can’t say “Well, it’s because all the drivers are old,” because even in the late 90s plenty were over thirty. It’s because my generation simply doesn’t have patience and wants to see everything happen right now. Look at the smartphone, for example. Within seconds, I can watch almost anything that has ever been put in front of a camera. Why should I, hypothetically speaking, sit down and watch an hour long green flag run when I can watch, say, a few episodes of Top Gear on Netflix? I’m not going to miss much and because fast cars are everywhere (Like in Top Gear), I’m not impressed with how fast these go.

    So overall, putting marketing aside, is this new rule good or is it bad? I’m going to reserve overall judgment on that one. Why? Two simple reasons –

    1. Let’s not pretend cautions are frequently called in national series races anyway. There are legitimate debris cautions, but there is also, say, the tiny piece of metal that caused the final caution of the 2015 season at Homestead. Is it really going to make a huge difference calling a caution every 20 minutes instead of calling one every 40?
    2. Truck races are only around an hour and a half long. So we’re talking maybe 1-4 time cautions as it is, which is probably the same amount of debris cautions in these races to begin with.

    This rule will have one of two results. It could be a complete failure and NASCAR does away with it by mid-season. Or it brings excitement to the sport and goes to the XFINITY and Cup Series in 2017 (albeit with a modified time). Is it fabricating excitement? Yes, it is, but that’s to be expected in today’s NASCAR.

    As I was finishing up this article, news broke that Barney Hall, the lead track announcer for the Motor Racing Network for many years, has passed away. Barney was an absolute legend and many in and around the sport grew up hearing him. He was a person I looked up to as a journalist and it will never feel right to me hearing anybody but Hall calling these races over the radio. There were more famous announcers over the years, such as Ken Squier, but there was only ever one voice of NASCAR, and that was Hall.