Starting 39th in historic Daytona International Speedway, Michael McDowell raced his way to his 11th top 15 finish of the year. Finishing 13th at the Superspeedway in the Tom’s Snacks Toyota Camry didn’t justify how well the car raced. For much of the 100 laps, McDowell was racing near the front of the pack gaining over 30 spots in 20 laps. “The car really was strong in race trim, McDowell said. “The team built a lot of downforce in the car so we didn’t have to adjust it much during the race. We wished we could’ve hooked up with someone at the end, but overall we were happy with the result.”
After a caution on lap 79, The Tom’s Snack Attack pit crew worked a flawless stop and put the #47 out in the 3rd spot. Opting to take only 2 tires, and without too many drafting partners, McDowell’s finish wasn’t exactly what he wanted but still a strong showing. Unfortunately, due to a lack of funding, the Nationwide JTG/Daugherty Toyota team may not be able to run all of the races in the second half of the series.
"I'm disappointed, for sure, but at the same time, you have to take the good with the bad. This sport has a lot of ups and downs. I'm just happy that we were able to run as many races as we did. In January, this team only had [sponsorship for] four races and I didn't have any. So we were both able to benefit from this situation and build good relationships, and who knows what the future holds," said an optimistic McDowell.
So what does the future hold for the 24 year old Phoenix native that’s only 3 points away from being in the top ten?
McDowell says, “I have a lot of faith that doors will open for me and it will all work out. Racing has so many high’s and low’s you just have to remember that God has a plan in place whether I know what it is or not.”
