NASCAR
Michael McDowell Wins His Way into 2023 Playoffs at Indianapolis
SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Year three on the Indianapolis Road Course saw perhaps the biggest Cinderella victory of 2023. After being fastest in practice and winning Stage 1, Michael McDowell led a race-high 54 laps for his second career victory. Entering the weekend three points outside of the Playoffs, the Front Row Motorsports No. 34 team is the 13th to lock up a berth. This monumental win comes just days after McDowell’s team re-signed him to drive the No. 34 in 2024.
McDowell flexed his muscles early on, taking command from polesitter Daniel Suarez on lap six. The No. 34 Ford would remain out front for the Stage 1 win.
Their first trip down pit road saw Suarez edge McDowell back onto the track. The 34 would stalk down the 99 and pass him late in Stage 2, just behind leader Denny Hamlin.
Suarez’s day would face adversity after the No. 99 team’s air hose got stuck under the splitter on their last pit stop. This loss of valuable time set Suarez back, putting Chase Elliott into second.
As laps wound down, Elliott drove the No. 9 to its maximum potential but couldn’t close in on McDowell. The Front Row Motorsports 34 team took their second Cup Series triumph. McDowell erased a 94-race losing streak, dating back to the 2021 Daytona 500. 54 laps led is a career-high for McDowell in a single race. Indianapolis was arguably McDowell’s most impressive race to date. The 13th driver to win into 2023’s Playoffs, McDowell celebrated big with his family.
“It’s a dream come true,” McDowell said. “I’m so thankful to everybody at Front Row Motorsports. Bob Jenkins, Horizon Hobbies, Love’s Travel Stops, Fr8 Auctions, Chicago Pneumatic, all of them.”
“Man we had a fast Ford Mustang today. Everyone at the Roush Yates engine shop, Doug, these guys gave me everything today. We had the fastest car. We executed, did what we needed to do, just so thankful. Thankful to still be grinding it out in the Cup Series. To put on a performance like that, I don’t know if it was dominant, but it felt pretty dominant to me.”
“I thought we could point our way in (to the Playoffs). But after the car we had yesterday in practice, I thought we had a good shot at winning if we could just get track position and maintain it.”
“It’s such a big deal, winning the Daytona 500 was one of the coolest moments you can ever have. But going to victory lane without my family was tough. So we cherry-pick. My family comes to the races we think we can win. We thought we could win this one, just so proud.”
Behind the front three of McDowell, Elliott and Suarez, the Indianapolis top-10 were: Tyler Reddick, Alex Bowman, Chase Briscoe, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell and Shane Van Gisbergen.
Only three spots remain in the 2023 Playoffs over the final two weeks of the regular season. See the Playoff standings following Indianapolis below.
The NASCAR Cup Series will be back in action from Watkins Glen. The Go Bowling at the Glen will go green Sunday at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. After a strong runner-up result, Watkins Glen king Chase Elliott eyes another win. Can the 9 find New York victory lane again?
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Sean Gardner/Getty Images
