Author: Kellye Arning

No. 14 Mobil 1 Annual Protection Ford driver Clint Bowyer wants to win the Daytona 500 someday, and a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title would cap a perfect career.

A few more trophies from historic racetracks where he hasn’t won like Indianapolis, Bristol and Darlington, just to name a few, would also be pretty cool to add to the trophy case at home. But the Emporia, Kansas native admits deep down he wants to win one trophy in particular and he’ll get his chance to do just that Saturday night when the Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City.

“Kansas Speedway this weekend in Kansas, I finally get to go home and I can’t wait to get there,” Bowyer said. “Hopefully, Saturday night I can get my first win at home. That would be huge. We’d have a heck of a party. Everyone would be invited.”

The Kansas dirt is where Bowyer came from. He began racing motocross in 1985, collecting more than 200 wins and several championships. After moving from motorcycles to cars, Bowyer gained a reputation for success at Lakeside and I-70 Speedways in Kansas City. Scott Traylor and some local Kansas City businessmen built and put Bowyer in an ARCA car at Nashville (Tenn.) Speedway in August 2003, and Bowyer led 47 laps before finishing second. He got a call from NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Childress to come south and the rest, they say, is history.

Bowyer’s current home is in North Carolina, but he hasn’t turned his back on Kansas, especially the 25,000 residents of Emporia. He returns often to deer hunt, visit friends or just be part of the community. In March 2013, he bought the Clint Bowyer Autoplex car dealership on U.S. Highway 50, where he once worked as a lot attendant, dent specialist and detailer.

Across the street sits the Clint Bowyer Community Building, constructed in 2012 thanks to a $1.5 million donation from his foundation. Inside are 25 new computers at the public library. There is a scoreboard at the aquatic center, a video camera at the auditorium, shoes for the Big Brothers-Big Sisters program, backpacks for kids, Christmas trees for needy families. And, in nearby towns, playground equipment and the reconstruction of a tornado-ravaged community center – all of it and more paid for by Bowyer’s foundation, or out of the driver’s own pocket.

Bowyer even brought country music star Blake Shelton to Emporia for a concert. Emporia appreciates its native son, having renamed the street on which the family towing business resides as “Hon. Clint Bowyer Boulevard.” He’s even recreated a little bit of Kansas at his 650-acre farm near Mocksville, North Carolina. It’s everything one would expect at a Bowyer farm: vintage cars, trucks, racecars, cows, eagles, donkeys and goats.

“In Kansas, you might have two trees and the rest pastures but, in North Carolina, everything is woods, so you can’t see anything,” Bowyer said. “When I drove down the long driveway for the first time, you could see everything – the pasture, the lakes. This was the Promised Land for me. There’s literally something to do from sunup to sundown.”

He’ll be all Kansas this weekend. He and wife Lorra, along with their toddler Cash and infant Presley, packed up the motorhome Clark Griswold-style Sunday night and drove from Talladega, Alabama to Memphis, Tennessee to visit the zoo, then on to Kansas, where he’ll be in high demand in front of the home folks.

Over the years, Bowyer has enjoyed some success at Kansas Speedway, posting two top-five finishes and five top-10s with 48 laps led in 17 starts. But, he’s never returned home with a race team like Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) that will bring a Ford Fusion powered by a Roush-Yates engine to the Jayhawk State.

The No. 14 Ford team led by Mike Bugarewicz has delivered fast cars this season, combining with Bowyer to climb to ninth place in the standings despite just their first season together. Last Sunday at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, Bowyer led 10 laps, his first of the season, on his way to a 14th-place finish dampened by a late pit stop for tire damage. Bowyer has finished in the top-15 in all races in 2017 except the season-opening Daytona 500, where a midrace accident ruined his day.

The North Carolina writer Thomas Wolfe in 1940 wrote the classic novel “You Can’t Go Home Again.” Clint Bowyer hopes to prove Wolfe wrong this weekend in Kansas.

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Mobil 1 Annual Protection Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What is the secret to doing well at Kansas Speedway?

“The secret is to just have a fast hot rod. It has to unload off the track fast. It’s an incredible racetrack with a lot of grip since the repave. Qualifying, track position and everything that leads up to that race are going to be really important. The key word you’ll hear this weekend will be grip. All of us will be looking for grip in places other than just the bottom of the track.”

Event:               Sparks Energy 300 (Round 9 of 33)
Date:                 May 6, 2017
Location:          Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway
Layout:             2.66-mile oval

Cole Custer Notes of Interest

• The Sparks Energy 300 will mark Cole Custer’s 14^th career start in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and his first XFINITY Series start at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. 
• In the 2016 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Talladega, Custer claimed the pole and led two laps in his first and only start at the 2.66-mile oval.
• Custer’s best finish in the eight XFINITY Series races run this season is fifth, earned in the sixth event April 8 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. It was his fourth top-10 and second top-five finish in 13 career XFINITY Series starts.
• Custer is third in the XFINITY Series Rookie of the Year standings, 28 points behind leader William Byron and 23 points behind second-place Daniel Hemric. Custer has achieved two Rookie of the Race awards this season.
• Custer is 12^th in the NASCAR XFINITY Series driver standings, 141 points behind series leader Elliot Sadler.
• Custer’s best qualifying effort in the eight XFINITY Series races run thus far in 2017 is third, earned in the eighth race of the season April 22 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. Custer has five top-10 starts and two top-five starts this season.
• The Sparks Energy 300 at Talladega is the second of four restrictor-plate races on the 2017 XFINITY Series schedule. The other restrictor-plate tracks are Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway (two races) and Indianapolis Motor Speedway (one race).

Cole Custer, Driver Q&A

What are your thoughts on Talladega and restrictor-plate racing?

“I think it’s fun because it’s something different we do in the season, but it makes it tough because you can do everything right and still get wrecked. We’re bringing a more competitive car than we had in Daytona, so I think we’ll have a lot more speed. There are some things that the drivers have to play into at Talladega, but a lot of it has to do with the draft. I don’t think I’m terrible at drafting, but I definitely need to get better.”

It seems each week your team has unloaded some fast Haas Automation Ford Mustangs. Has your new partnership with Ford and Stewart-Haas exceeded your expectations? 

“Absolutely. We’ve had some great speed out of our Haas Automation Ford Mustangs, just not the finishes we want. If our luck turns around here soon, hopefully we can put Stewart-Haas and Ford in victory lane where they belong.”

Jeff Meendering, Crew Chief Q&A

What are your thoughts and expectations on racing at Talladega?

“I’m really looking forward to Talladega. We had a car that raced well in Daytona, but we got collected early in an accident. We didn’t get to run long enough to really show what we could do. We were probably a little conservative with our setup going into Daytona with Cole being a rookie and not knowing what to expect. This weekend, we’re focusing on a little more speed in the car and sacrificing some handling. I think we should have a pretty fast Haas Automation Ford Mustang. Our Roush Yates engines were fast in Daytona, so that will be a huge help to us this weekend. Hopefully, we can get the monkey off our back and make it through the wrecks to get a decent finish.”

Danica Patrick and the No. 10 Aspen Dental Ford Fusion team for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) travel to Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway – a track where anything can happen –for Sunday’s Geico 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race.

Talladega has long been considered a bit of a wild-card race, where a driver’s fate is not entirely in his or her own hands. It is one of only two racetracks on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit where restrictor plates are used. A restrictor plate is a device installed at the air intake of an engine to limit its power in an effort to reduce speeds, increase safety and help provide an equal level of competition. The horsepower-restricted engines require drivers to draft together, side-by-side, at speeds approaching 200 mph.

As a result, superspeedway events often produce wild, unpredictable racing.

“The cool thing about superspeedways is that anybody can win,” Patrick said. “It’s a toss-up, what’s going to happen.”

And that toss-up always includes the distinct possibility of the seemingly inevitable “big one” – a multicar accident that typically eliminates multitudes of drivers from the event. This type of racing leaves teams wondering what it will take to survive the “big one” and make it to victory lane at the end of the day.

While Patrick has set records at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway – the other restrictor-plate superspeedway on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule – she’s yet to find the same level of success at Talladega. With eight prior starts at the track, her career-best finish is a19th-place effort she earned in October 2014. Last year, a late-race accident left her with a 24th-place result in May and, when the series returned to the track in October, she finished 20th.

Patrick enters this weekend at Talladega fresh off of an 18th-place result at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. The effort marked the team’s second-best finish of the season and first top-20 result since the March 5 race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

As the NASCAR Cup Series returns to Talladega this weekend, Patrick and the No. 10 Aspen Dental Ford team will be ready to survive the “big one” and go for the win on Sunday.

DANICA PATRICK, Driver of the No. 10 Aspen Dental Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

You’ve always liked going to Talladega. Why is that?

“The fans really make that place. The campgrounds, all that stuff, make it one, big party. You see how much fun the fans are having and that makes it fun for us as drivers. It’s just a unique place. The sheer size of the facility is amazing. I liked it from the first time I went there and, hopefully, we can have a good run and a good finish. The cool thing about superspeedways is that anybody can win. It’s a toss-up, what’s going to happen. On top of that, SHR’s superspeedway cars are really good.”

Describe the intensity of restrictor-plate racing.

“It’s super easy to drive around the track flat-out by yourself. It’s not hard at all. When you put all of the other cars around you, it’s not necessarily about how the car feels on the track, although that can be an issue, for sure, at times. It’s more about what everyone else is doing around you. You’re constantly looking at what’s happening in front of you. You’re also looking at what’s behind you. Probably more important than what’s happening in front of you is what’s happening behind you – who’s coming, who’s following you, who’s helping you move forward. There have been plenty of times that I’ve gone to the bottom and complained, ‘Where’s my help?’ It seems like I’ll slot in on the bottom line and then everyone behind me disappears. You really have to have people behind you, pushing you. The race is constantly evolving and you and your spotter have to be on it. It’s a big race for spotters, so having a really good one that you trust is very important.”

What are three words that describe restrictor-plate races?

“Three words that describe plate racing would be: crazy, fast and risky.”

What is your favorite part of going into the Talladega infield?

“My favorite part about going into the infield at Talladega is seeing things you’re not supposed to see. I mean, it’s a crazy party and I feel like those are the kinds of things that keep people coming back. It’s the atmosphere and the whole package of the weekend – not just the racing – but the parties, having fun and making memories.”

Kevin Harvick is heading to Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway this weekend for the GEICO 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race hoping to score his first victory of the 2017 campaign and also share in his partner Jimmy John’s appreciation for all things “Freaky Fast!”

The driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing is looking to help his partner celebrate its once-a-year Dollar Sub Day by capping off the week with a win. Jimmy John’s is offering $1 sandwiches from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. today at all participating locations. The Dollar Sub Day is limited to in-store purchases only. All sandwiches – Nos. 1 through 6 on the menu, as well as BLT, Unwich lettuce wraps and slims – are part of the deal. Jimmy John’s first started Dollar Sub Day with “Customer Appreciation Day” in April 2016.

While race fans have a chance to enjoy their favorite Jimmy John’s sandwich for only a dollar, Harvick will be looking to secure his best finish of the season at the 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. He has reason to be optimistic that he can finish the race at the front of the field.

In his last 10 restrictor-plate races, Harvick ranks second in points with 320 and top-10s with six. But his last points-paying NASCAR Cup Series win on a restrictor-plate track came at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway in 2010. He will be looking to add his fourth points-paying NASCAR Cup Series win on a restrictor-plate track this weekend at Talladega.

The 2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion has one career win at Talladega in NASCAR’s premier series. In April 2010, Harvick started fourth and led just two laps but, in the closing laps, he pushed Jamie McMurray’s No. 1 car and the two pulled away from the pack. As they navigated the tri-oval one final time, Harvick jumped out of line to beat McMurray to the finish line by .011 of a second, which still ranks 15^th among the closest finishes in NASCAR Cup Series history.

Harvick would like to grab the NASCAR Cup Series trophy in victory lane Sunday like so many people who grab their dollar sandwiches will today. While he has run up front and scored three stage wins this year, Harvick is still in search of his first race win of the season. Since joining SHR at the beginning of 2014, Harvick has never gone to Talladega in May still in search of his first win of the season. He hopes to change that luck with a dominant performance Sunday at Talladega.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Describe the intensity of restrictor-plate racing?

“Plate racing is something you have to be aggressive at just for the fact that, if you’re not aggressive, it always seems like you are not going to be where you need to be. Nine times out of 10, I believe, the aggressor is going to be the guy who comes out on the good side of things just for the fact that you’re making things happen and you’re not waiting for something else to happen. When you wait for something else to happen, that’s usually when you get in trouble because it’s usually someone else’s mess. You can still get in trouble if you’re aggressive, but it seems like, with this rules package and the way that things are, it’s best to stay aggressive and try to stay up front.”

You’ve won at both superspeedways on the circuit – Daytona and Talladega. Do you approach these races with a strategy in mind?

“I think, with the current points system, it’s better to stay up front and try to get as many points in each stage as you can throughout the day. Obviously, if you don’t qualify well, that makes it much more difficult but, with the new points system, I think you’re going to see a much different race. Guys aren’t going to be able to leave 20 potential points and playoff points on the table. They’re going to be racing for every point – that’s a good thing for the fans and should make it an exciting race.”

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series tackles the high banks of Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway Sunday for what is normally one of the sport’s most exciting races of the season. By now, everyone knows Talladega racing often leads to nearly 40 cars racing four-abreast, 10 rows deep at 200 mph for more than three hours.

Talladega is about crashes and near crashes with short tempers among stressed-out drivers. Tune in to the radio or television broadcast of the race and the commentators are sure to call the action a “high-speed game of chess.”

But Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 Haas Automation Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), isn’t buying that cliché.

“Chess is sitting there, bored out of your mind, thinking of all the other things that you would rather be doing,” Bowyer said. “There’s a guy across from you, you’re trying to figure out if he’s actually into it or doing the same thing, bored out of his mind, thinking about all the things he would rather be doing.”

Bowyer said NASCAR restrictor-plate racing is so much more than any cerebral pursuit.

“You’re literally freaking out, making knee-jerk-reaction decisions the whole race,” he said. “You’re reacting to things that you don’t even remember. You’ll get out of the car at the end of the race, and somebody’ll be like, ‘Man, that was an awesome move that won you the race!’ And you’re like, ‘What the hell are you talking about?’ There were at least 4,000 instances of what won that race or didn’t win that race.”

Don’t let Bowyer kid you; he knows what he is doing on restrictor-plate tracks, especially at Talladega, where he’s won twice and posted six top-five finishes in his 22 career starts at the 2.66-mile track. Bowyer has scored the most points of any driver in the last 10 Talladega races but, even after successful days like he has enjoyed there, he says he’s mentally and physically weary after each race from all the exertion.

“There’s so much going on inside the car, whether you’re listening to the spotter, or you’re looking at – as you’re listening to him, you’re following along to – that story in the mirror, right?” he said. “You’re living it through the windshield. I mean, there are so many things that are going on, you just – you flat out – don’t take it all in. I mean, your brain is registering so many things that, at the end of the race, you don’t even remember half of it.”

Bowyer rides a wave of success to Talladega with top-15 finishes in all nine of the 2017 races except for the season-opening Daytona 500, where a midrace accident ended his day. He’s earned two top-five finishes and four top-10s this season. The No. 14 team led by crew chief Mike Bugarewicz has climbed to ninth in the standings.

“Everybody is working really hard and we are just having fun,” Bowyer said. “SHR is a fun organization and Ford is a fun manufacturer to work with. We still haven’t put everything together and been the best we can be, but Sunday will be our 10th race working together and we expect things will continue to improve.”

Bowyer’s racing fortunes have improved since arriving at SHR this season to replace three-time champion Tony Stewart, who retired from NASCAR competition. Bowyer would like to go down in the history books as the first driver to bring SHR a Talladega victory. The organization’s 37 victories in 864 Cup Series races since its 2009 inception have come at every track except Talladega and Kentucky Speedway in Sparta.

Whether or not Bowyer makes history for SHR Sunday afternoon in the normally unpredictable Talladega race, it will be more entertaining than, say, a game of chess.

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Haas Automation Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

How important are teammates during restrictor-plate races?

“Well, I think that’s where the problem lies, right? You have teammates out there, and you need ’em, to get right down to the end. And, by the way, now you need to beat ’em, so it’s an interesting problem when you have teammates like mine who you need all the way through. And then, hopefully, we line up one-two-three-four there at the end. You’re like, ‘Well, which one can I use right there to the end, who I know I can trust the most?’ Nobody’s trustworthy during these things. You can’t be.”

What are your thoughts on Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s retirement?

“His retirement is going to be a huge void. We are all going to miss Dale Jr. We all enjoy him being around. He was making fun of me on Twitter Sunday morning in Richmond. That’s what I’m going to miss as a friend and person, forget the racetrack. We are all cooped up in the motorhome lot most weekends like a bunch of animals, so that time we get to enjoy with one another is what you will miss the most.”

For years, when Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) driver Kurt Busch would head to Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway or Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway, he’d wonder if the race at hand would be the one – the one in which he’d finally be able to pull into victory lane and complete the checklist of having won at every type of track on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series circuit.

From the shortest racetrack – Martinsville (Va.) Speedway – to a road-course victory at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway, the driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Ford Fusion had won at almost every type of track. He’d won on racetracks ranging in length from .526 of a mile, .533 of a mile, .75 of a mile, 1 mile, 1.5 miles, 1.99 miles and 2 miles. He’d celebrated in victory lane at the high-banked ovals and flat tracks. He’s even had a seat at the head table at the year-end banquet.

But one trophy eluded Busch. He’d won 28 NASCAR Cup Series races, but never a points-paying one at either of the two restrictor-plate tracks – Daytona or Talladega. That all changed in February. After 17 years of trying, Busch was finally able to check that box. And he did it in a big way, by winning for the 29th time in his career, at the 2017 season-opening Daytona 500.

The win was significant on many levels. Not only was it his first win in what is arguably NASCAR’s most renowned race, it was SHR’s, as well. It was Busch’s first race behind the wheel of a Ford, the manufacturer with whom he won the 2004 Cup Series championship, since November 2005. It was the first outing for SHR with the Dearborn, Michigan-headquartered manufacturer. And, for Daytona Beach native Tony Gibson, it was his first trip to victory lane at the famed speedway as a crew chief.

So, while Busch is now one of just a handful of drivers who own victories at each type of racetrack, his focus can shift to winning at each active racetrack on the NASCAR Cup circuit. He’s found his way to victory lane at 15 of 23 active racetracks on the circuit and can now shift his focus to checking those boxes. He’ll head to Talladega this weekend looking to return to his winning ways by putting a check in the win column there.

In his first start at Talladega in April 2001, Busch recorded a third-place finish, which happens to be his best at the 2.66-mile superspeedway. He’s finished third there three times since – in April 2002 and 2007, and October 2006. But this time Busch has the confidence he can improve on those results despite not having the same race-winning Ford Fusion he had at Daytona in February. The Daytona 500-winning racecar traditionally goes on display for a year at the Daytona 500 Experience Museum.

This weekend, Busch would like nothing more than to add another win to his already impressive resume. Not only would a victory cross Talladega off his win list, it would also give Busch and his No. 41 team a second victory in 2017 and another five valuable bonus points for the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. With his postseason eligibility already in place, they can head to Talladega and welcome the opportunity to race aggressively for the win.

KURT BUSCH, Driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation/Monster Energy Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Talk a little bit about racing at Talladega. 

“It’s so difficult to predict Talladega. You can ride around in the back, or charge up front all day and, either way, your day can end with your car on the hook. You just hope to have Lady Luck guide you to a good finish. Restrictor-plate races have turned into this pattern that it is hard to have any type of advantage over any other team. It just comes down to being in the right place at the right time.”

Restrictor-plate racing has been described as a 200 mph chess match. How would you describe it?  

“That’s pretty much it. You’ve got to be able to know the draft, understand the draft, use the draft, block other guys, find holes, make holes. It’s definitely a chess game because you’re always thinking three or four steps ahead. It’s tough to get caught up when you make a mistake. You’ve got to quickly get rid of that and put together a new plan. At the end of the race, everybody is saving their best for the end. Cars are just going everywhere. The plan you thought you had, you’ve got to make a new one. You’ve got to go on the fly.”

In order to be successful in a restrictor-plate race, you need some assistance from other drivers. How do you get that assistance when every driver out there is trying to beat one another?

“Cash? I don’t know. There are certain guys you know to draft with. There are certain guys you know they’re going to be tough. There are certain guys you might see work their way up, like the Fords always come in strong with Front Row Motorsports. The Roush cars are always there. The Penske cars have been tough the last five, six years at the restrictor-plate races. So, you just get a gauge as the race goes on who’s been up front all day. But you’ve got to keep track of the guys who have been hanging out in the back and they’re going to show up at the end.”