Sometimes it just takes time to get things right, but when they do, it’s always a great thing. That in essence was what Sunday’s race was all about, specifically for two drivers.
Race winner, Clint Bowyer, left the camp of Richard Childress Racing at the end of 2011 because his team was lacking sponsorship, and his contract was expiring. Not feeling he was in the right place in his career, he made the decision to join the team of Michael Waltrip Racing, taking over for David Reutimann. The entire MWR team was also in transition as it added veteran driver Mark Martin to a part-time schedule as his contract at Hendrick Motorsports ended as well after last year.
Things were not good at first, as struggles in the first two races effected the team. But, it seemed the influence of Martin and Bowyer, both with years of experience, began showing. Each week that Martin, or Brian Vickers who ran the No. 55 at the Sonoma Raceway along with Bristol, the No. 55 was near the front.
Bowyer and other teammate Martin Truex Jr. consistently were in contention for strong finishes.
This weekend, it was Bowyer breaking through first, capturing the first win for MWR since Reutimann won at Chicagoland in 2010. The win was a huge shot in the arm for this team that struggled it’s first couple years. But, there was no question that the team has made strides this year. Only time will tell how many more wins MWR will get as the season progresses.
The other big winner, although not in victory lane, was third-place finisher Kurt Busch. The emotion on his face after the race and in the post-race news conference was evident.
His team owned by James Finch is running sponsorless and struggles each week to make it to the track. Three weeks ago, a run-in with a reporter after a Nationwide Series race was what put NASCAR over the edge. Already on probation for some post-race actions at Darlington, NASCAR dropped the hammer, extending his probation till the end of the year, but more importantly gave him a week suspension. That kept Busch out of the line-up at Pocono.
This weekend, he came in as the defending race winner, and as the race progressed flew through the field to the lead, eventually challenging for the top spot as the laps wound down.
A damaged car prevented him from really contending, eventually leaving him falling to third, but afterward it was as if he just won his first race. It looked like he was about to cry.
“When you show up and you’re on a third of the budget and you almost bring it to victory lane, you can’t say that one guy does it out here. It takes a full team effort. But I really want to deliver for my guys today, and being that close, and make one mistake, it’s a tough game. That’s why it’s Sprint Cup,” said Busch in the media center afterward.
He may not have won, but it is a shot in the arm for Finch and for Busch. He’s still working hard on his image to bring in the sponsors. But it is a strong start.
Two drivers that started the year with new teams both having strong races. That’s a real feel-good story from Sunday.
RESULTS: 1-Bowyer 2-Stewart 3-Kurt Busch 4-Vickers 5-Johnson 6-Gordon 7-Biffle 8-Ambrose 9-Allmendinger 10-Logano
NOTABLE FINISHES: 13-Kenseth 14-Kahne 16-Harvick 17-Kyle Busch 21-Edwards 23-Earnhardt Jr. 35-Hamlin
CAUTIONS: 2 for 7 laps. Lap 83-86 (#10 accident-T8), 108-110 (#18, 27 spin-T7).
LEAD CHANGES: 8 among 5 drivers. Ambrose 1-11, Gordon 12-24, Bowyer 25-33, Kurt Busch 34, Truex Jr. 35-47, Bowyer 48-70, Kurt Busch 71, Truex Jr. 72-73, Bowyer 74-112.
TIME OF RACE: 2 Hrs, 39 Mins, 55 Secs.
AVERAGE SPEED: 83.624 MPH
MARGIN OF VICTORY: 0.829 Seconds
POINT STANDINGS: 1. Kenseth, 596 points; 2. Biffle, -11; 3. Earnhardt Jr, -14; 4. Johnson, -25; 5. Stewart, -63; 6. Harvick, -64; 7. Bowyer, -67; 8. Hamlin, -73; 9. Truex Jr, -76; 10. Keselowski, -106; 11. Edwards, -117; 12. Kyle Busch, -137.