NASCAR Cup Series

Bowyer finds redemption in top runs

Published Nov. 2, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

For Clint Bowyer and the No. 33 Richard Childress Racing team, success is the best revenge.

While Clint Bowyer continued to show the perseverance of the squad by winning his first restrictor-plate race at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, his crew chief Shane Wilson enjoyed the victory from the comfort of his couch in North Carolina.

After NASCAR officials failed the No. 33 Chevrolet in postrace inspection following Bowyer’s win last month at New Hampshire, the driver and owner were both docked 150 points.

Wilson and his car chief Chad Haney were suspended for six weeks — a penalty that was later reduced to four weeks after the team appealed.

Sunday was Week IV for Wilson. While his men partied in Victory Lane under the guidance of interim crew chief Scott Miller, Wilson was home with his wife, Dana, and his makeshift command center.

“It’s definitely some mixed emotions,” Wilson said. “You obviously want to be there. We’ve been competitive in all the speedway races in the last year and a half. It was good to finally win one. I just wish I was there.”

The team’s Chase for the Sprint Cup hopes could have been very different had it not been docked 150 points following its win at New Hampshire. Bowyer would have been second in the points standings at that time. And the momentum for the team? Priceless.

Certainly, the No. 33 team made the ultimate sacrifice — its pit crew. With teammate Kevin Harvick in the thick of the Chase hunt, RCR elected to exchange Bowyer’s pit crew — considered the strongest of the three squads — with the No. 29 to offer that team every advantage going forward.

The swap occurred after California where Bowyer finished a solid second behind winner Tony Stewart and Harvick, who had issues on pit road ended up seventh. Entering Martinsville Harvick needed a bump, particularly since he was battling against Denny Hamlin and Jimmie Johnson, the two most dominant drivers at that track.

It all started with that penalty and its impact.

“It would have been different,” Wilson said. “We lost focus at Dover and Kansas with everything going on during the week, then having to go to the Tech Center every week. What we were doing and what all the other Chase teams were doing were quite a bit different. Between the Loudon deal and the pit crew deal, it‘s not what you envision as your Chase.

“You feel a little detached. Once the year starts, 60 percent of your week is spent on the road. So I don’t see the road guys much since they only spend two days a week in the shop. The longer the suspension, the more detached you get. But we kept doing our deal at the shop and I still feel like we contributed to this.”

Bowyer has experienced tremendous success when he’s battled in the postseason. In 2007, he finished third in the points standings and in 2008 Bowyer was fifth. His issues at New Hampshire have been tremendously disappointing. However, Bowyer has become the ultimate team player.

“I always look forward to the Chase because these are some of the best racetracks for me,” Bowyer said. “These are good racetracks for our race team and for me as a race car driver. I'm still frustrated. Took the wind out of my sails.

“The two races after that whole mess, it was a disaster. If we had that back, we were along our normal routine, I don't think we would have had those bad runs that we've had. It's pretty uncharacteristic of our race team to have those two wins here in the Chase and then three really bad races.”

Since missing the Chase last season, all three RCR teams have made remarkable gains in 2010.

Harvick was the points leader before the standings were reset for the Chase. And while Bowyer wasn’t as consistent in the regular season, he fought hard at the end to qualify for one of the 12 Chase berths.

Still, despite his setbacks, Sunday’s victory is proof that Bowyer’s not giving up.

“Just very, very happy for a lot of reasons,” Bowyer said. “Everybody at RCR has worked very hard to get us back. To have Kevin racing for a championship is where obviously Jeff and I wanted to be. But to have him still in a shot at winning a championship, that's very important. To be able to win two races in a Chase for our race team is very important.

“Shane built an awesome race car. Scott has done a great job all year long of being a competition director and filling that role that we never had, filling the void. To be able to step in and come close to winning two races in the four races he's been here is pretty incredible. So very proud of the job that he's done stepping in for us.”

Wilson will return to his perch on the pit box this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Wilson has taken his time off from the track to analyze the races more and admits he’s noticed things on TV that he would have missed at the track. Regardless of the time off, Wilson is ready to return to action.

“I’m just glad to get back in it,” Wilson said. “You don’t have the pressure at home that you have sitting on the pit box. Definitely when you sit out, it puts a lot of things into perspective. That’s how we make our living -- by going to the track and racing. When you can’t do it for a while, it makes you realize how fortunate we all are that we get to go and do the deal.”

And with three races remaining to make a difference, Bowyer is not going away quietly. While any shot at the title blew up after New Hampshire, he is currently the only driver to win two races in the Chase. Bowyer remains 12th in the points standings but has moved to within six points of Greg Biffle (11th), 15 points behind teammate Burton (10th) and is just 17 markers from catching ninth-place Kurt Busch.

Although a top-10 finish in the points standings is not the Sprint Cup, for Bowyer to participate in the championship celebration in Las Vegas will serve as somewhat of a consolation prize.

“Before this race I didn't think I was going to have a shot at walking across the stage,” Bowyer said. “I knew I was going to have to go to Vegas, but they kick you out shortly after you get done with the media. Maybe I can walk across the stage if I keep this up. A little dig.”