Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-20):
● Clint Bowyer started 13th and finished 32nd.
● By lap four, Bowyer said he couldn’t get his No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Haas Automation Ford Mustang to turn in the corners.
● Bowyer also asked his crew for more grip as the staged progressed.
● The No. 14 crew called Bowyer to pit lane on lap 17 for a routine, green-flag pit stop.
● By pitting early and staying out during the stage break, Bowyer moved to fifth for the Stage 2 start.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 21-40):
● Bowyer started fifth and finished fourth to earn seven bonus points.
● The No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Haas Automation Ford Mustang moved to third on lap 25 and second on lap 29.
● On lap 33 Bowyer told the team he “is getting killed” in the bus stop.
● Bowyer dropped to fourth, where he raced until the end of the stage.
● Bowyer remained on the track during the stage break.
Final Stage Recap (Laps 41-90):
● Bowyer started fourth and finished 20th.
● He kept pace with the frontrunners once the stage started despite the older tires.
● Disaster struck on lap 62 when Bowyer was forced to pit for a flat tire. It appeared there was also a mechanical issue, but after several stops under caution the crew determined the racecar could continue.
● Bowyer restarted in 34th and began climbing through the field, moving to 22nd by lap 77 and up to 20th by lap 81.
Clint Bowyer, Driver of the No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Haas Automation Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“That was frustrating, because I think we were on the right strategy. We were able to stay up front even on older tires and we got some stage points, but that flat tire kind of killed our day. We just didn’t have enough time to get back up to where we should have been.”
Notes:
● Chase Elliott won the Go Bowling at The Glento score his fifth career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory, his second of the season and his second straight at Watkins Glen. His margin of victory over second-place Martin Truex Jr. was .454 of a second.
● There were four caution periods for a total of 13 laps.
● Twenty-nine of the 37 drivers in the Go Bowling at The Glenfinished on the lead lap.
● Kyle Busch leaves Watkins Glen as the new championship leader with a 13-point advantage over second-place Joey Logano.
Next Up:
The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Consumers Energy 400 on Sunday, Aug. 11 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. The race starts at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBCSN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
TSC PR
