Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-25):
● Clint Bowyer started 11th and finished 29th.
● Bowyer held his position in the early going letting his tire air pressures come up to optimal working order on the wet track.
● The No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Mustang began picking up spots and climbed to third by the lap-10 competition caution.
● He moved to second on the restart and took the lead by the end of lap 13, turning laps nearly a second faster than the next fastest car.
● Bowyer led twice for nine laps on rain tires before Ty Dillon used much faster slick tires to take the lead on lap 21.
● A caution with two laps to go forced Bowyer to pit lane for slick tires dropping him to 29th.
● Bowyer stayed on the track during the stage break and moved up to 21st.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 26-50):
● Bowyer started 21st and finished 12th.
● The No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Mustang moved to 10th by lap 34 as the field raced in mostly dry conditions.
● Bowyer raced in sixth when a caution fell with five to go in the stage. Bowyer pitted and fell back to 19th.
● Bowyer and Kyle Busch made contact on the restart leaving Busch with a flat tire.
● Bowyer climbed back to 12th and stayed on the track during the stage break.
Final Stage Recap (Laps 51-109):
● Bowyer started sixth and finished 10th.
● The No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Mustang set a blazing pace moving to second with 41 laps to go.
● He made his final pit stop of the race under caution with 38 laps to go dropping to 18th.
● The No. 14 suffered severe front-end damage in an accordion-like accident on the restart ending his chances for victory.
● Bowyer fell to 33rd and the crew worked during an ensuing caution to repair the damage and fix the power steering.
● Bowyer didn’t give up and despite no power steering drove back to 10th in the closing laps.
● Bowyer made a brief visit to the care center after the race where he was evaluated and released.
Notes:
● Bowyer earned his 11th top-10 of the season and 225th of his career
● This was Bowyer’s third straight top-10 at the Roval. He finished fourth in the series’ previous visit to the track in September 2019 and third in the series’ inaugural race at the Roval in September 2018.
● Bowyer led twice for nine laps to increase his laps-led total at the Roval to 11.
● Chase Elliott won the Bank of America Roval 400 to score his ninth career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his third of the season and his second at the Roval. His margin of victory over second-place Joey Logano was 3.895 seconds.
● There were nine caution periods for a total of 16 laps.
● Thirty-two of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
● Kevin Harvick leaves the Roval as the championship leader with a 13-point advantage over second-place Denny Hamlin.
Playoff Standings to Begin Round of 8:
1. Kevin Harvick (4,067 points)
2. Denny Hamlin (4,054 points) -13 points
3. Brad Keselowski (4,035 points) -32 points
4. Chase Elliott (4,027 points) -40 points
5. Joey Logano (4,022 points) -45 points
6. Martin Truex, Jr. (4,017 points) -50 points
7. Alex Bowman (4,009 points) -58 points
8. Kurt Busch (4,006 points) -61 points
Failed to Advance to Round of 8:
9. Austin Dillon (3,071 points)
10. Clint Bowyer (3,063 points)
11. Kyle Busch (3,060 points)
12. Aric Almirola (3,047 points)
Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:
“We had them covered in the rain and we were one of the fastest in the dry, but those cautions at the end of both stages came at the wrong time. Then that wreck killed us because we lost power steering. The guys gave me a great car today.”
(On Care Center visit) “I’m good. Was definitely outta gas. Another couple three laps and I’d have been on the ground after the race crappie floppin’. Self-inflicted, I shouldn’t have knocked the power steering out.”
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Hollywood Casino 400 on Sunday, Oct. 18 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. It is the seventh race of the 10-race playoffs and the first race in the Round of 8. It starts at 2:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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