TOLEDO, OH (May 21, 2007) – It was almost as if everything aligned perfectly at Toledo Speedway for Michael McDowell. After putting his No. 2 Z-Line Designs / Make-A-Wish / Beck Dodge on the pole for a fourth time in 2007, McDowell put on a race filled with drama, suspense, and a highlight-reel’s worth of offensive driving.
The weekend kicked off with a bang as McDowell cut a lap of 16.544 to win his third consecutive ARCA SIM Factory Pole Award. Immediately, the Arizona native looked to be the driver to beat in the Hantz Group 200 by Federated Car Care.
As soon as the green flag fell Sunday afternoon, it was clear that McDowell was racing on another plane as the rest of the 35-car field. After a cycle of pit stops, veteran racers Ken Schrader and Frank Kimmel drove out to large leads in the heart of ARCA country; however, McDowell was on the prowl for a victory.
With less than 30 laps to go, McDowell, running fifth, passed Schrader, a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series regular with a “pass-in-the-grass” coming off of Turn 3 to capture fourth-place in the running order. Worn tires on the cars or Kimmel and Justin South made them easy pickings for McDowell who then zeroed in on teammate Ken Butler III for the lead.
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McDowell blew by Butler with 5 laps to go when an accident in turn 3 brought out a caution flag... |
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McDowell blew by Butler with five laps to go when an accident in Turn 3 brought out a caution flag. As that wreck occurred, Butler and McDowell collided, resulting in McDowell spinning but saving his Dodge from imminent harm. He would regroup for the final two laps and bring home a 7th place finish.
“I just can’t believe it,” said McDowell “We had this race—we had the car. It is a shame that our own teammate spun us for the win. Personally, that’s the best I’ve driven a race car and our team, Patrick (Donahue) and his guys poured their hearts and souls into this effort. Seventh-place is great, but that win is what we deserved.
“It seemed like everything fell into place for us. From the moment we unloaded, we knew we had an opportunity to do something really exciting. I hate it for the 2 crew that we couldn’t be the ones in victory lane but the Z-Line Designs / Make-A-Wish / Beck Dodge will live to fight another day.”
Up Next: Michael McDowell and Eddie Sharp Racing will take on the jet-fast Iowa Speedway on Saturday, June 2. |
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Pacesetter Michael McDowell leads all drivers in ARCA Sim Factory Pole Awards (4) and is second among all drivers in laps led in 2007. |
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TOLEDO OH (MAY 19, 2007) - How hard does rookie sensation Michael McDowell have to bang on the door before it finally opens to the top of the podium? We're in the process of finding out.
McDowell, in Eddie Sharp's No. 2 Z Line-Make A Wish-Beck Dodge, earned his third consecutive SIM Factory Pole Award and fourth of the 2007 season Saturday afternoon at Toledo Speedway.
The Phoenix, Arizona native starts on the point for Sunday's Hantz Group 200 presented by Federated Car Care at Toledo. Teammate Ken Butler III will start from 6th position in the No. 22 ESR Domino's Pizza Dodge |
"The guys from SIM Factory were joking around, saying that they need to start engraving my name onto the trophy beforehand," said McDowell. "We need to make sure that we follow through with this pole and bring home a win. It's time for us to show that we're not one lap wonders."
"Scoring the fourth pole of the year--thats amazing-- that's a testament to Patrick Donahue and the crew. Eddie Sharp has been great to us. We've got to pull this win off and give him a trophy to show off in Charlotte."
| TOLEDO QUALIFYING RESULTS/STARTING GRID |
POS |
NO |
DRIVER |
CAR |
TIME |
SPEED |
POLE |
2 |
McDowell |
Z Line-Make A Wish-Beck Dodge |
16.544
|
108.801 |
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|
|
|
|
6 |
22 |
Butler III |
ESR -Domino's Pizza Dodge
|
16.763
|
107.379 |
The race is scheduled to air LIVE on SPEED Sunday, May 20th beginning at 12 Noon Eastern. |
MOORESVILLE, NC (May 17, 2007) - The late ARCA winner and NASCAR superstar Davey Allison once said “I’d rather be lucky than good.” Well, Michael McDowell and Eddie Sharp Racing echo that sentiment; they have certainly been good but luck is something the team is still chasing.
McDowell hopes to change his luck this weekend at Toledo Speedway for the eighth race of the ARCA RE/MAX Series season, the Hantz Group 200 by Federated Car Care. The team brings the very same No. 2 Z-Line Designs / Make-A-Wish / Beck Dodge that has captured two ARCA Sim Factory Pole Awards (out of three) on the season in hopes of stopping its short track string of solid runs with unpleasant finishes.
McDowell and ESR tested at Toledo prior to last weekend’s race at Kentucky Speedway. This Sunday’s race will be the first time McDowell competes there but he feels his chances of a win are promising.
“The test went well for us,” said McDowell. “We found a good enough balance with the car that we’ll have a great setup for race trim. This car (the chassis that captured poles at Winchester and Salem) has been good to us this season—we’ve been fast everywhere we’ve gone—and this weekend should be no different.”
While McDowell’s 2007 season has been strong performance-wise, his string of bad luck has dropped him from fifth to seventh in the ARCA RE/MAX Series point standings in the last two races. Also in the midst of a heated battle for the Rookie of the Year Award, McDowell knows it’s time to score some high finishes in order to make a move to the top of the standings.
“We’ve lost some ground in the points,” continued McDowell. “As far as our team goes, we should be up there in the mix with Frank Kimmel and those guys. Toledo can be that breakthrough race we’re looking for if we can just complete all of the laps.”
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Michael McDowell and ESR's 2 car have been fast everywhere this season, leading all drivers with an impressive 3 poles. |
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“I’m looking forward to racing at Toledo. It will be fun to visit the home of ARCA and, hopefully, continue to be as quick as we have been at tracks like Salem and Winchester.”
McFACTS:
> McDowell has dropped two positions in the ARCA point standings in the last two races. He currently is in 7th position.
> This is McDowell’s first career race at Toledo Speedway.
> In his previous short track starts in 2007, McDowell has earned finishes of 18th (Lakeland), 3rd (Salem), and 22nd (Winchester). In those three races, he earned poles at both Salem and Winchester and qualified 7th at Lakeland.
> McDowell leads all drivers in ARCA Sim Factory Pole Awards (3) and is second among all drivers in laps led in 2007.
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| Hantz Group 200 by Federated Car Care |
| Date: |
May 20, 2007 |
| Track: |
Toledo Speedway (Toledo, OH) |
| Race Distance: |
200 Laps (100 miles) |
| Team: |
Eddie Sharp Racing |
| Crew Chief: |
Patrick Donahue |
| ARCA Sim Factory Pole Award Qualifying will take place at 3:30 pm on Saturday. The Hantz Group 200 by Federated Car Care begins a Noon EST on Sunday and will air live on Speed Channel. |
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