Bowyer, Camping World Chevy Stay Strong in Chicagoland

Race/Date: Dollar General 300 Powered by Coca-Cola – July 11, 2008 - Location: Chicagoland Speedway – Joliet, Ill. - Start Position: Ninth - Finish Position: Seventh - Points Position: First (183 point lead)

JOLIET, Ill. – Clint Bowyer and the Camping World Racing team continued their recent run of strong finishes with another top-10 showing Friday night at Chicagoland Speedway.

The seventh-place effort was Bowyer and Company’s 10th consecutive top-10 finish and 17th overall this season. Despite the strong showing, Bowyer, the NASCAR Nationwide Series point leader, lost 19 points to second-place Brad Keselowski after the rookie driver finished third behind Denny Hamlin and eventual winner Kyle Busch.

In Friday afternoon’s qualifying session, Bowyer lapped the mile-and-a-half Joliet, Ill., oval in 30.821 seconds (175.205 mph). The lap was good enough for the ninth-best time, lining up the Emporia, Kan., driver on the inside of the fifth row for the Dollar General 300.

75,000 fans packed the Chicagoland Speedway grandstand for the 20th race of 2008 for NASCAR’s No. 2 division. After starting ninth, Bowyer made quick work of the competition, rocketing up to fifth just five laps into the 300-mile event. He was fourth by lap nine and third by the 16th circuit.

The blue and gold Camping World Chevy raced in the top five for the first quarter of the 200-lap event before Bowyer peeled off the racing surface, under green-flag conditions, on lap 54 for routine service including a fresh set of Goodyear Tires and a full load of fuel.

Much to the chagrin of Bowyer and his Dan Deeringhoff-led team, the night’s first caution flag waved immediately after the team’s first pit stop, trapping the Camping World Monte Carlo SS on the tail end of the lead lap. Fortunately, another quick caution flag on lap 62 allowed Bowyer to catch back up to the leaders before the next restart.

Back under green, now 13th, Bowyer picked up four positions and was running ninth when the race’s third and final caution flag waved on lap 88. Deeringhoff called his driver back to pit road for another new set of tires and when the green flag flew on lap 93, Bowyer was seventh on the scoring pylon.

Over the next 58 laps, the six-time Nationwide Series winner raced in and around the top five. As the evening’s second round of green-flag pit stops cycled through the 43-car field, Bowyer was able to stay out long enough to lead a lap, earning five valuable bonus points along the way.

The Camping World Chevy made its final visit to pit road on lap 152 with Deeringhoff calling for one last set of fresh tires and a chassis adjustment in hopes of giving Bowyer a shot at tracking down the leaders.

The fifth-year Nationwide Series racer was scored 10th following his fourth and final pit stop and drove up to seventh but track position was at a premium and the extended green-flag run didn’t afford Bowyer the opportunity to reel in the top six.

Busch earned his fifth checkered flag of the season with Hamlin in tow. Keselowski was third, Brian Vickers finished fourth and polesitter David Reutimann rounded out the top five.

Bowyer’s Richard Childress Racing teammate Jeff Burton finished eighth.

Next weekend the NASCAR Nationwide Series rolls into Madison, Ill., for the division’s annual stop at Gateway International Raceway just five minutes from downtown St. Louis.

The Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250 will be televised live on ESPN2 Saturday, July 19 beginning at 9 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 21st round of the 2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship will be televised on ESPN2 the same day beginning at 5 p.m. EDT.

• CLINT BOWYER QUOTE

“It was a good night for the Camping World Chevrolet but with the way green flag pit stops cycled out, we didn’t get a chance to track down the leaders. Track position is so important at tracks like Chicagoland and when you don’t get any caution flags, the guys in clean air just drive away. We still had a decent points night. We only gave up a few to the guys who finished in front of us so it wasn’t too big of a deal. We’ll go to St. Louis next weekend and race for the win and get our points back.”