Michael McDowell

In The Fast Lane: Most Improved after Chicagoland

2018 NASCAR Season, , , , , , , , Leave a comment

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Photo by: Jared C. Tilton

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series event at Chicagoland Speedway for the 2018 Overton’s 400 came down to a dramatic finish between Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson.

Busch and Larson bumped fenders and made the most noise, while the three veterans and one young gun quietly held their own.

No. 1 Erik Jones – Erik Jones earned his seventh top 10 of the season at Chicagoland, finishing sixth.

Jones started in the ninth position and earned stage points in Stage 1 at the 1.5-mile track with 10th place.

He is 14th in the points standings, 328 points behind Kyle Busch and 87 points from Ryan Blaney, who is in 10th place.

No. 2 Jamie McMurray – Jamie McMurray’s failed oil pump at Sonoma one week ago, didn’t keep the Chip Ganassi Racing driver from making a quick recovery.

McMurray failed to earn stage points on Sunday, but gained 25 positions from last weekend to finish in 12th place. He also held an average position of 15th on Sunday.

McMurray sits in 20th place in the points standings, 427 points behind Busch and 58 points from the cutoff position of 16th with 10 races to go before the playoffs begin.

No. 3 Kyle Busch – Kyle Busch continued his growing rivalry with Kyle Larson on Sunday when he and the 25-year-old traded paint on the last lap of the Overton’s 400.

Larson held the momentum in Turn 1 and Turn 2, eventually reaching Busch and tapping the left rear of the No. 18 Skittles Red White & Blue Toyota. Busch returned the favor in Turn 3 when Larson was unable to clear him.

A bump to the rear sent Larson spinning, giving Busch his fifth MENCS win of the season.

The win is Busch’s 48th of his Cup career. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is one win away from tying three-time champion Tony Stewart.

Busch remains the points leader by 62 points over Kevin Harvick.

No. 4 Joey Logano – Joey Logano earned his 13th top-10 finish of 2018 on Sunday, with an eighth place average throughout 400 miles.

Logano earned stage points in Stage 1 (eighth) and Stage 2 (10th), before scoring his fifth straight top 10 in Joliet, Illinois since finishing 37th in 2013.

Logano finished 11 places better than last week at Sonoma. He is third in the points standings, 119 points behind Busch.

No. 5 Michael McDowell – Michael McDowell gained 11 positions from his 30th place finish at Chicagoland one year ago. He finished just outside the top 20 in 21st place.

McDowell’s highest position was fourth on Sunday. He earned his only top 10 in the season opener at Daytona in February. Can the Front Row Motorsports driver better his finish?

Notable : Aric Almirola earned the first stage win of his career on Sunday. He led 27 laps before earning the stage win. He led a total of 80 laps, before finishing in 25th place.

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In the Fast Lane: Most Improved after Daytona

2018 NASCAR Season, , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

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Photo by: Robert Laberge

The 2018 NASCAR season kicked off to an incredibly start in the 60th running of The Great American Race at Daytona International Speedway.

An iconic number returned to Victory Lane after being pushed by another, while rookies and veterans alike were the victim of the Big One.

This week’s Top 5 most improved drivers earned their place by making impressive moves, improving their positions from a year ago, and leading laps and earning stage points.

No. 1 Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. – The Richard Petty Motorsports driver finished a career high second in his first start in the Daytona 500. Wallace, who started seventh, remained up front throughout the event and became the highest finishing African American in the event. Wendell Scott held the previous record for his 13th place finish in the 1966 Daytona 500.

Wallace pushed Austin Dillon to the win Sunday evening and avoided the Big One, despite contact with Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin in overtime.

The RPM driver can take the momentum and confidence gained and apply it next weekend at Atlanta. Wallace has three Xfinity starts at the 1.5-mile track, his best finish is sixth from one year ago.

No. 2 Austin Dillon – Austin Dillon stated he doesn’t remember much about the 1998 Daytona 500, in which he stood in Victory Lane next to the late Dale Earnhardt.

The 27-year-old will have a reason to remember this year’s event in twenty years.

Dillon restarted fourth in an overtime finish, but gained the lead after making contact with Aric Almirola, which sent the Stewart-Haas Racing driver spinning.

The win is Dillon’s second in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Dillon now holds victories in two of the four “Crown Jewel” events. Dillon won the Coca-Cola 600 in 2017.

Dillon has proven to excel under pressure of the famous No. 3 in recent years, earning eight top-5s and 18 top-10 finishes since 2016.

No. 3 Ryan Blaney – Ryan Blaney dominated by leading 118 laps and winning Stage 2. The newest driver of Team Penske came back to earn a seventh place finish despite sustaining damage in two multi-car wrecks.

Blaney heads into Atlanta, where he has an average finish of 21.5, as the points leader. Can he improve his results, and will it be enough to keep the points lead over teammate Joey Logano?

No. 4 Michael McDowell – Michael McDowell found a new home at Front Row Motorsports after losing his ride to Kasey Kahne at Leavine Family Racing, but he picked up right where he left off with another stellar performance at a restrictor plate track.

McDowell finished ninth in his 250th start. It is his second straight top-10 at Daytona and sixth top-10 of his career.

McDowell wasn’t in contention for the win at the end, but remained mid-pack for majority of the race. He was as high as fifth and secured stage points in Stage 1 (sixth) and Stage 2 (fifth).

No. 5 Chris Buescher – Chris Buescher last scored a top-5 in August of 2016, when he finished fifth at Bristol. The JTG-Daugherty Racing driver quietly climbed inside the top-5 Sunday to earn his best finish at the 2.5-mile track.

Buescher scored a top-10 during the 2017 Coca Zero 400. He sits ninth in the points standings, 25 points behind the points leader.

Notables: Justin Marks earned his best career finish at Daytona with 12th place, one lap down from the leaders. Marks has four MENCS starts and led his first lap in the series on Sunday.

William Byron finished 23rd after spinning on Lap 190. Byron was also involved in a 9-car incident on Lap 60 that ended the day for Erik Jones, Ty Dillon, Daniel Suarez, and two-time Daytona 500 winner Jimmie Johnson.

Danica Patrick was the victim of a multi-car wreck on Lap 102 and finished in the 35th position. The race was Patrick’s last NASCAR event. She is scheduled to participate in the Indy 500 to bring her racing career to an end.