- Clint Bowyer (sixth) and Denny Hamlin (seventh) registered top-10 finishes in Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race at Michigan International Speedway. Jeff Gordon was the race-winner.
- Brian Vickers (19th) also recorded a top-20 result at the 1.5-mile track.
- Camry driver Matt Kenseth is currently fifth in the unofficial NSCS point standings, 107 points behind leader Jeff Gordon. Camry drivers Bowyer (10th), Kyle Busch (15th), Vickers (18th) and Hamlin (20th) are also in the top-20 in the point standings following Michigan.
CLINT BOWYER, No. 15 5-Hour Energy Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Finishing Position: 6th
How was your race?
“We clearly got a lot of work to do. It’s unfortunate — we’re behind, there’s no question. We just did what we needed to do today. Everybody works as a team all weekend long. It was a long, hard-fought battle. Restarts were very important. Brian (Pattie, crew chief) had good strategy. Right now, everything has to be perfect to get a decent finish and today everything was perfect. This is a tricky part of the season. Everybody is pushing hard. You got a lot of guys coming from behind that are getting their stuff working better. Everybody’s working hard. It’s that time of year.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 7th
How was your race?
“It was a good day for us. We’ve obviously been struggling for speed — struggling a lot today. Really, the best handling car I’ve had all year, really in a long time — really since the repave. Proud of the job that the entire FedEx Freight team — Darian (Grubb, crew chief) and Mike (Wheeler, interim crew chief) — did this weekend. I really loved my car — especially at the end of the race, once we got track position. Strategy got us up there. I picked cars off one by one. We had a great handling car. It’s good to see us run up there.”
Why did you have such a good handling race car?
“We made some adjustments overnight that I was really happy with. We talked a lot overnight about the adjustments we were going to make — and everything I totally agreed with. I thought we just put a great package together. I think the track conditions came to us a little bit throughout the day. Overall, I was extremely happy with the handling of the car. It’s been a long time since we’ve really been this competitive at this track.”
What happened with you and Dale Earnhardt Jr. during the race?
“It’s just frustration from my part. I’m trying to fight — do everything I can — to keep up with the Hendrick engines. I’m side-drafting down the straightaway, trying to do everything I can. Not things I frown upon when I see other drivers do them. We’re trying to do everything we can to keep our track position. He (Dale Earnhardt Jr.) got a little upset that I was side-drafting and so he kind of crowded me up to the wall in turn four. I was a little disappointed, but that’s part of it. You talk about it, get it worked out and move on”
BRIAN VICKERS, No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Finishing Position: 19th
COLE WHITT, No. 26 Iowa City Capital Partners Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Finishing Position: 25th
ALEX BOWMAN, No. 23 Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Finishing Position: 26th
J.J. YELEY, No. 83 Burger King Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Finishing Position: 30th
JOE NEMECHEK, No. 66 Land Castle Title Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Finishing Position: 35th
MATT KENSETH, No. 20 Dollar General Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 38th
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 39th
What happened that sidelined you for a portion of the race?
“I felt so good about my car those first few laps running the bottom, but then I was getting hung out on the straightaways. Then I just tried going to the top in (turns) three and four right away and I got loose all the way through (turns) three and four. Every time I touched the gas it wanted to spin out and finally it was too much gas and not enough save and I wrecked. I just hate it for these Interstate Batteries guys. I was really optimistic about our car there in the opening laps and we didn’t get to see what we were capable of.”
