Clint Bowyer No. 07 Event Preview 

No. 07 Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet Impala SS - Event Preview Fact Sheet
Event/Date: Allstate 400 at the Brickyard– July 27, 2008
Venue: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

NOTES

* This Week’s Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet at Indianapolis Motor Speedway … Clint Bowyer will pilot Chassis No. 257 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This is a brand new Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet Impala SS that has yet to see the race track. 

* Bullish on the Brickyard … In two starts at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Bowyer has a strong 14th-place starting average to go along with an impressive 8.5 finishing average. On August 5, 2006, the 29-year-old driver, along with teammate Jeff Burton, swept the top-two spots in qualifying making it an all RCR front row. Bowyer went on to finish fourth and record his career-best finish at the legendary two-and-a-half-mile race course. 

* So Much for a Weekend Off … While the majority of his Sprint Cup Series brethren took last weekend off, Bowyer, a six-time winner in NASCAR’s junior division, raced his No. 2 Chevy at Gateway International Raceway outside St. Louis. The NASCAR Nationwide Series point leader started fifth and finished eighth. It was Bowyer’s 11th consecutive top-10 finish and 18th overall in 21 races this season. Despite having to work last weekend, the Emporia, Kan., native was able to take a three-day respite earlier last week in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. 

* Summing Up the Season … In the season’s first 19 events, Bowyer has earned one win (Richmond), four top fives, nine top 10s and led 150 laps. He has recorded a 22.0 starting average to go along with a respectable 16.3 finishing average. The two-time Sprint Cup Series winner has completed 5,623 of the 5,692 laps (98.78 percent) run this season and sits 13th in points. Still, with a tightly bunched field inside the top 12, Bowyer is just 27 markers behind 12th-place Denny Hamlin, 49 behind Tony Stewart in 10th and a mere 61 markers behind eighth-place Matt Kenseth. 

* First Kiss … While serving as team manager for Kevin Harvick’s No. 29 Chevrolet, Bowyer’s crew chief Gil Martin kissed the bricks following Harvick’s 2003 victory at IMS. 

* Keep on Rolling … Bowyer has been running at the end of every race dating back to Phoenix in November 2006, a streak of 56 races. The only other driver running at the end of more consecutive races is Harvick who extended his own modern-era (1972-present) streak two weeks ago at Chicagoland Speedway by finishing his 63rd consecutive race without recording a DNF (did not finish). 

* Race to the Chase … This weekend’s Cup Series event at IMS marks the fourth Race to the Chase event – the 10-race stretch preceding the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, which kicks off when NASCAR’s premier division returns to New Hampshire Motor Speedway in September. Over the 10 “Race to the Chase” events last year (New Hampshire – Richmond), Bowyer posted one top-five and four top-10 finishes, notching an average finish of 14.3. His only finish outside the top 20 was at New Hampshire last July when he finished 37th after a freak incident on pit road cost Mr. Jack’s Crew eight laps. At this time last year, Bowyer was 10th in points – 630 markers behind then-leader Jeff Gordon. Currently, he is 13th in points – 625 back from current point leader Kyle Busch. 

* RCR at Indianapolis … In 14 previous Sprint Cup races at IMS, RCR has posted two poles (Harvick 2003, Burton 2006) two wins (Earnhardt 1995, Harvick 2003), eight top-five and 17 top-10 finishes. RCR cars have also been running at the finish of every Allstate 400 at the Brickyard dating back to the inaugural race in 1994. 

* The Collective RCR … In 19 races this season, RCR-prepared Sprint Cup Series entries have notched two wins (Burton – Bristol, Bowyer – Richmond), 10 top-five and 24 top-10 finishes. The Welcome, N.C.,-based race team has completed 17,201 laps in 2008 with four different drivers including Bowyer, Burton, Harvick and Ken Schrader. Meanwhile, RCR teams have logged 23,174 miles of competition this season and been on top of the leaderboard for 300 laps. 

* Chevy Day at the Brickyard … Bowyer will participate in Chevy Day at the Brickyard Friday, July 25 from 10 a.m. – noon. The Emporia, Kan., native will provide media and Chevrolet consumers “hot laps” around the famed yard of bricks. He will also sign autographs and race remote controlled cars in the Pagoda Plaza in the speedway’s infield. RCR president and CEO Richard Childress, along with Bowyer’s teammates Burton, Harvick and Scott Wimmer will also be on hand for the morning’s activities. Chevy day at the Brickyard is open to the public and starts at 8 a.m. with activities stretching across various infield locations. Admission to Chevy Day is included in the price of admission to the IMS grounds for the day’s Allstate 400 at the Brickyard activities. General admission tickets for Friday are $10 per person, free for children ages five and younger. 

* Meet the Press … Bowyer will be available for interviews at the Plaza Village Pavilion, located behind the Pagoda, on Friday, July 25 at 1:15 p.m. 

* Cross Town Traffic … Bowyer will make the cross town commute this weekend, as the NASCAR Nationwide Series makes its annual stop at O’Reilly Raceway Park, a .686-mile oval located approximately six miles west of IMS. Bowyer will travel from the big track to ORP via helicopter and, if all goes according to plan, should be able to practice his No. 2 Camping World Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS at least once before heading back later that afternoon for qualifying. Live television coverage of the Kroger 200 benefitting Riley Hospital for Children from ORP will take the green flag Saturday, July 26 at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on ESPN. The Motor Racing Network and SIRIUS Satellite Radio will also broadcast the race live from coast to coast. Qualifying for the 22nd round of the 2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship will be televised on ESPN2 the same day beginning at 4:30 p.m. EDT. 

* Up to Speed … The 15th running of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard from Indianapolis Motor Speedway will take the green flag Sunday, July 27 at 2 p.m. EDT. The race will be televised live on ESPN beginning at 1 p.m. EDT and broadcast worldwide on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 20th points-paying race on the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule will be televised live on ESPN2 Saturday, July 26 at 10 a.m. EDT.

CLINT BOWYER QUOTES

You carry so much speed down the front straightaway at Indianapolis. Does it ever fell like you won’t be able to get the car slowed down enough to make the first corner?

“That’s the thing about Indianapolis. There are a lot of people there. When race day comes around and you pull down into turn one for the first time and see all the people in the grandstands, it looks like you’re going to run right into the stands at the end of the front straightaway. Then, all of a sudden, the track makes a hard left. It’s definitely unique in that sense.”

How cool is it to race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

“Racing at Indianapolis … with all the history and tradition and all the people that turn out, it’s something you can’t explain. It’s an experience beyond words. Anytime you have that many people in one place to watch you race is about as cool as it gets. It’s unbelievable to think that you’re one of the 43 drivers they’ve come to watch. They may not like you but the bottom line is that enormous crowd is there to watch the series that you’re a part of. That’s why you always want to run well at Indy.”

Can you describe the layout at Indianapolis?

”It’s a square. It’s so different than anywhere else we go. It’s completely flat. You haul the mail there. You’re flying in the corners. You go through the corners fast and they’re as flat as can be. You drive around there in a street car at 80 or 90 mph and you think ‘I’m going to get in this corner going about 210 and there ain’t no way I’m going to make it.’ That’s exactly what I thought the first time I was there. But, you get through the corners and the track is fun and races well. Indianapolis always puts on a good race.”