"It was nice to be able to lead a lap for Microsoft Small Business Specialist," McDowell said. "There was a big wreck around Lap 17 and the race was red flagged. When the cars fired up again and everyone pitted, my crew chief (Bill Pappas) told me to stay out to lead a lap for five bonus points. Then I came in for the guys to work on the car because it was real tight and that hurt us a bit. Late in the race, it was better and we were running decent lap times. There in the end, we were just too loose."

Since his debut at Martinsville Speedway in March, McDowell's best finish is a pair of 26th place finishes (Martinsville Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway). As McDowell grows in the sport, crew chief Bill Pappas reminds him it will take time to hone his talents at tracks like Dover that he's never seen before.

"The two of us get very frustrated together and then I look at him and say, ‘You know, patience is not a popular word in this series but that's what it's going to take, time and patience'," Pappas said. "He's proved that he can go out there and race with these guys. We've qualified in on time at every race. I think throughout the races he's raced well. It's just going to take time and hopefully people are understanding of that and give him that time and it'll pay off I think. He's focused, he's very professional, very mature for a 23-year-old guy and it's exciting to see that develop."

No. 00 Microsoft Small Business Specialist Toyota

"We are now 34th in owner points and are in danger of falling out if we have problems this weekend," McDowell said. "This series is tough, but I am staying focused on keeping us locked in the top 35. I'm looking forward to Pocono because we had a good Cup test there last week and I won there last year in the ARCA RE/MAX Series and that helps build confidence going into this weekend."

Live coverage of the Pocono 500 at Pocono Raceway on Sunday, June 8th will air on TNT at 12:30 p.m. ET and MRN Radio at 1:15 p.m. ET.

QUALIFYING
McDowell to start 32nd on Sunday

Rookie Determined to Deliver Solid Finish for Microsoft at Dover

Live coverage of Best Buy 400 at Dover International on Sunday, June 1st on FOX airs at 1:30 p.m. ET and 1:15 ET on MRN Radio.

PRESS CONFERENCE
Before qualifying, McDowell participated in a media press conference inside the Dover International Speedway media center and his transcript is below courtesy of Toyota PR:

What are your impressions of Dover?

"It's amazing just how fast it is here for just being a mile. The corners are awesome just dropping down into it. It's definitely a special place. It's very difficult coming to any new track and seeing it for your first time, especially at this level -- the Cup level because the guys are so good and confident. They go out there and start ripping off laps right away. So, it's really tough to get up to speed and get the car where you need it and also learn the track as much as possible."

"It's amazing. Dover, obviously, everybody's been telling me about it the last couple weeks. It's one of the coolest places that the drivers come to. It's really awesome just dropping down into the corners -- it's really fast. It's one of those things that takes a lot of confidence to get around this place. Seeing it for the first time is obviously tough on a Cup weekend because those guys unload and they are ready to go and they've been doing it for a long time. Just getting up to speed out there (in practice) and the Microsoft car was pretty good there at the end. It took me a while to get to speed. Made a few changes and I think we're going to be alright. For sure, coming to new places is difficult and this one is a lot of fun."

Did you learn a lot in a hurry and did that benefit you?

"Well, like you said -- that's a hard way to learn. Martinsville is one of those racing deals that got blown out of proportion once we had an opportunity to get back and talk about it. It turned out to be not such a big deal. We were running well, we were running up in the top-20 and on the lead lap with 20 to go. I go back to that and think that's pretty good for our debut -- to be running in the top-20 400 laps into it and only being a lap down. Unfortunately, we had contact there late in the race. Texas was definitely a learning experience for me. The biggest thing for me was I shouldn't have run that second lap (in qualifying). There was something that wasn't quite right the first lap and I even said it. And, I went down in there anyways -- which was a dumb thing to do. I definitely learned from my mistakes there. We just keep pushing forward. This is a tough series -- and a lot of great drivers -- and I definitely got thrown into the deep end trying to jump from ARCA to Cup. We knew how difficult that was going to be -- by no means did I say; 'Hey, I'm the greatest thing that ever happened here. I'm ready to go Cup racing.' That wasn't it at all. This is a year for me to really learn and do it at the Cup level, and do it in the new car. That being the biggest key -- just to learn this new car and what it takes to be fast in it. Starting in '09 we have something to build on."

Is there pressure to prove yourself to the veterans?

"I think there is. It is tough -- it is a tough business and if you lay down they'll eat you up and spit you out. It will be that quick. I went into Martinsville knowing I needed to run all the laps, but it's a short track. I had to drive as hard as I could all day long. That's what I did. I just had my mind set on just getting everything I could out of it all day long. At the end there when the leaders where coming, we were still racing -- we were racing for 16th, 17th and staying on that lead lap. I think it is. And, I definitely understand the other side of it, too. You got a new guy that no one has ever heard of that comes straight from ARCA -- maybe he doesn't deserve it or hasn't earned it from their perspective. And, then you get in, and you figure this guy has to be three or four laps down and he should just get out of the way. I think, when we went back and everybody had an opportunity to look at it and saw that we were just one lap down and in position for the 'lucky dog,' it helped me gain a little but more respect from those guys."

Can you compare how Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota cars are running compared to the other Toyota cars?

Michael McDowell

"Toyota is obviously a huge part of Michael Waltrip Racing and Michael Waltrip Racing would not be a three-car Cup team without Toyota's support. Last year with a new team and a new manufacturer at the Cup level was obviously very difficult. I think that we're getting better every weekend. David Reutimann proved that last weekend. He ran up in the top 10 all night long at Lowe's and he had an awesome run which shows that our cars and our team are very capable. The tough thing with the COT is just hitting it every weekend. It is very track dependent. The setups are quite different everywhere we go. We just don't quite have 100 percent grasp on what we need for different places. Going back to a mile-and-a-half now obviously we'll have a better baseline to start out with and be able to build upon David's solid run there at Lowe's. As far as Toyota goes, I think that they've done an awesome job winning races this year with the (Joe) Gibbs (Racing) folks. They've been awesome for them, but for us we're really focusing on just making our Toyota's better and getting our cars where they need to be."

PREVIEW
McDowell faces Dover for the first time in No. 00 Microsoft Small Business Specialist Toyota Camry

Homecoming for MWR Vice President and General Manager Ty Norris