TEAM EFFORT EARNS BOWYER, JACK DANIEL’S CHEVROLET SEVENTH-PLACE FINISH AT BRISTOL

Race/Date: Sharpie 500 – August 23, 2008 - Location: Bristol Motor Speedway – Bristol, Tenn. - Start Position: 22nd - Finish Position: Seventh - Points Position: 12th (Gained one position)

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Despite being collected in a multi-car melee just prior to the halfway mark, Clint Bowyer and the Jack Daniel’s Racing team rallied to finish seventh in Saturday night’s Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

At the same time, the strong run vaulted Bowyer from 13th to 12th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship point standings with two races remaining in the Race to the Chase for the Sprint Cup. The top 12 in points following the Sept. 6 Chevy Rock and Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway are locked into the Chase for the Sprint Cup – NASCAR’s 10-race playoff format that will determine the 2008 champion.

Bowyer lapped Bristol’s high-banked, half-mile oval in 15.979 seconds (120.083 mph) during Friday afternoon’s qualifying session and was credited with the 22nd staring spot. Remarkably, two other drivers, Denny Hamlin and Aric Almirola, recorded the same speed. By rule, Hamlin was awarded the 21st position based on points prior to the race.

The green flag waved shortly after 8 p.m. before an estimated sellout crowd of 160,000. The opening 95 laps ran caution-free and despite mentioning a tight-handling condition exiting the corners, the two-time Sprint Cup Series winner earned an impressive nine positions during the opening green-flag run.

The first yellow flag of the evening waved on lap 96 and Bowyer headed to pit road three laps later. Crew Chief Gil Martin called for a fresh set of Goodyears, fuel and an air pressure adjustment to both rear tires. Dynamite service in the pits afforded Richard Childress Racing’s No. 07 team an additional three spots and, when the green flag waved on lap 103, Bowyer was up to 10th in the running order.

Over the next 92 circuits, Bowyer snagged three more spots and was seventh when the second yellow flag flew for a four-car incident in turn two that ultimately left RCR driver Jeff Burton with a 42nd-place finish.

As Bowyer was jockeying for seventh in turn one just past halfway, two cars got together in front of him leaving him with no where to go. The resulting contact damaged the right-front corner of the Jack Daniel’s Chevy and the seven-car incident was significant enough for NASCAR to red flag the race. The 12-minute break in the action afforded Mr. Jack’s crew a chance to assess the damage and formulate a plan before the red flag was lifted so their driver could pit for repairs.

Once the yellow was displayed, Bowyer made three trips to his pit during the intermission so Martin and Company could fix their damaged machine.

Back under green, now mired in 18th, the Emporia, Kan., native quickly went to the whip and over the next 58 laps, and worked himself back up to 11th.

The fourth yellow flag was displayed on lap 280 with Martin summoning his driver back to pit lane a few laps later. A 12.35-second pit stop garnered Bowyer three more positions and when the green flag was displayed yet again, the Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet was back in the top-10, eighth on the scoring pylon.

Bowyer’s team snared him one more position during the evening’s final round of service and when the checkers fell on the Sprint Cup Series second and final stop of the season at the “World’s Fastest Half Mile,” Bowyer was rewarded with his 11th top 10 finish of the season.

Carl Edwards won the race beating point leader Kyle Busch to the checkered flag by nearly two seconds. Denny Hamlin was third, fellow RCR teammate Kevin Harvick finished fourth and Jeff Gordon rounded out the top-five.

Next week, Bowyer and Mr. Jack’s Crew head west to Fontana, Calif., for the annual Labor Day weekend doubleheader for NASCAR’s Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series’.

The Pepsi 500 from Auto Club Speedway of Southern California will take the green flag Sunday, August 31 at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The race will be televised live on ESPN beginning at 7 p.m. EDT and broadcast from coast-to-coast on Motor Racing Network and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying will be televised live on SPEED Friday, August 29 at 6:30 p.m. EDT. MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio will carry qualifying updates live.

• CLINT BOWYER QUOTES

“That was a great night for the Jack Daniel's Chevrolet. We got caught up in someone else's mess and Gil and all the guys did an awesome job fixing the car so we could keep racing. It was a total team effort tonight. Our pit stops were awesome and the car was great. We came out of Bristol with a top 10 and we're back inside the top 12. It was a really, really good night."