Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):
● Clint Bowyer started 12th and finished ninth to earn two bonus points.
● The No. 14 BlueDEF Ford moved to 10th by lap five when lightning stopped the race for two hours and eight minutes.
● Bowyer climbed to seventh by lap 32 when lightning stopped the action for 38 minutes.
● A quick pit stop moved the No. 14 to fifth before the lap-35 restart.
● Bowyer reported he lost grip and faded to ninth before the stage ended.
● During the stage break, the crew made adjustments to increase the No. 14’s grip.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81 -160):
● Bowyer started ninth and finished 15th.
● The No. 14 BlueDEF Ford continued to struggle with a lack of grip and dropped to 13th by lap 95.
● Bowyer made a routine green-flag stop on lap 120.
● Bowyer said his car was too tight in the latter half of the stage and dropped to 15th.
● During the stage break, the crew made adjustments to help the No. 14 turn better and returned Bowyer to track in 10th.
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Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-267):
● Bowyer started 10th and finished 11th.
● The No. 14 BlueDEF Ford dropped to 17th after a lap-171 pit stop, but crept to 12th by lap 200.
● Bowyer moved to 11th with 54 laps remaining in the race.
● Bowyer took over 10th with seven laps remaining.
● Brad Keselowski passed Bowyer with three laps left in the race dropping him to 11th.
Notes:
● Bowyer earned his fifth top-15 of the season and his 12th top-15 in 15 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Homestead.
● Since joining SHR in 2017, Bowyer has never finished outside the top-12 at Homestead.
● Denny Hamlin won the Homestead 400 to score his 40th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third of the season and his third at Homestead. His margin of victory over second-place Chase Elliott was .895 of a second.
● There were six caution periods for a total of 27 laps.
● Only 15 of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● Kevin Harvick remains the championship leader after Homestead with an eight-point advantage over second-place Chase Elliott.
Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 BlueDEF Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“That was frustrating. Our BlueDEF Ford had the speed tonight, but we just couldn’t get it to turn like we needed. We were tight and really struggled for grip.”
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the GEICO 500 on Sunday, June 21 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The race starts at 3 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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