Clint Bowyer unable to capitalize and score much-needed Sonoma win
If Clint Bowyer ultimately fails to make the 2015 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, the Michael Waltrip Racing driver will undoubtedly look back on Sunday's outing at Sonoma Raceway as one of his biggest missed opportunities.
In danger of being left out of NASCAR's playoff a second consecutive year, Bowyer was in the mix for a win throughout the Toyota/Save Mart 350 but ultimately finished third behind race winner Kyle Busch and Busch's older brother, Kurt.
Bowyer, who led four laps in his No. 15 Camry, is a former Sonoma winner and widely regarded as one of the series' best road racers. Sunday's race on the 1.99-mile, 10-turn Sonoma course did little to change that perception.
But while the result marked his first top-five finish in 16 races this season, it wasn't the Chase-clinching win he needed and wanted.
"We weren't just able to capitalize," Bowyer said. "I think we were probably a second- or third-place car. It seemed like for whatever reason the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) came on really good there. The 41 (Kurt Busch) was probably the fastest car all weekend long. We were right there with him. Fun to come out here in wine country and be able to compete like that."
Prior to Sunday, Bowyer's best finish of 2015 was seventh in the season-opening Daytona 500.
"This is where we need to be running," the Emporia, Kansas native said. "We need to be able to go to these regular racetracks and keep this momentum and confidence level up that we have when we come out here. It's unfortunate -- you get that close and you want to get greedy."
Bowyer lined up sixth on the final restart with seven laps to go, but was first among drivers who had pitted under the caution for fresh tires. He wasn't able, however, to hold off his fellow Toyota of Kyle Busch or the Chevrolet of Kurt Busch.
"I was just in the wrong line," Bowyer said. "That restart there, Kyle got up on the inside of us and I wasn't able to get underneath of him. Then I got hung up with Matt (Kenseth) and thought we were both going to wreck. Tore our car up real bad. You get so close -- drove my ass off. I tried, just came up a little short."
The final green-flag run of the race being only seven laps did not play to Bowyer's advantage.
"Kyle had a really good short-run car and after a handful of laps I was able to get by him on the run before that," Bowyer said. "I knew that wasn't going to be the case (on the last run). I was just going to have to go. I tried to get up through him and get rough with him and beat him to it, but he beat me to that situation and won."
Even though Bowyer couldn't mask his disappointment, he was able to glean some positives from Sunday's outcome, which followed a 10th-place finish two weeks ago at Michigan, his first race with new crew chief Billy Scott.
"Billy Scott and all these guys on the 5-hour ENERGY Toyota -- two solid weekends," Bowyer said. "Wasn't what we came out here to do, but had a lot of fun."
Michael Waltrip Racing
