Clint Bowyer may have forgotten the way to Victory Lane after going more than five seasons without a Cup Series win, but his perseverance paid off at Martinsville.
When Clint Bowyer hooked up with Stewart-Haas Racing before the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, it was seen as something of a new lease on life after Michael Waltrip Racing disintegrated and a frustrating year at HScott Motorsports. On Monday at the STP 500, Bowyer’s patience and determination paid off in the best possible way.
Bowyer passed Ryan Blaney for the lead early in the final stage at Martinsville Speedway, and he was never seriously challenged after that, taking the checkered flag for the first time since October 2012. The win snapped a 190-race winless streak for Bowyer while also making him the first driver to win a Cup Series race in all three current manufacturers (Chevrolet, Toytota and Ford).
Kyle Busch had the best shot at preventing what will be a popular win, but he never got closer than about seven tenths of a second in the closing laps. Bowyer was able to navigate a crowded field of lapped traffic before beginning his burnout without even completely slowing down, something that astounded Jeff Gordon in the Fox Sports broadcast booth.
The emotion that inspired that early burnout was clear in Victory Lane.
“It’s just a weight off the shoulders, man,” Bowyer said in his post-race TV interview.” It’s been a long time. You start to question if you can get it done or not. To have it come at this place, I’m telling you, it meant a lot.”
Two other drivers dominated the early proceedings in a race that was free of the kind of chaos that sometimes reigns at Martinsville. Denny Hamlin won Stage 1 after passing teammate and race runner-up Kyle Busch and pretty easily cruising from there. But it was Blaney who showed the way for the majority of Stage 2, leading over 100 laps in the middle portion of the race.
His adjustments, however, made his car worse as Bowyer was getting better. If the rest of the Cup Series garage wasn’t already on notice for how strong Stewart-Haas Racing is after Kevin Harvick won three straight races this season, it certainly should be now that another of the team’s drivers has grabbed a win.
Next: STP 500: More highlights, stage results from Martinsville
2018 STP 500 results from Martinsville Speedway
- Clint Bowyer
- Kyle Busch
- Ryan Blaney (Stage 2 winner)
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Kevin Harvick
- Joey Logano
- Alex Bowman
- AJ Allmendinger
- Chase Elliott
- Brad Keselowski
- Kurt Busch
- Denny Hamlin (Stage 1 winner)
- Paul Menard
- Aric Almirola
- Jimmie Johnson
- Kyle Larson
- Erik Jones
- Daniel Suarez
- Ryan Newman
- William Byron
- Michael McDowell
- Ty Dillon
- Chris Buescher
- Kasey Kahne
- David Ragan
- Jamie McMurray
- Cole Whitt
- D.J. Kennington
- Ross Chastain
- Austin Dillon
- JJ Yeley
- Matt DiBenedetto
- Trevor Bayne
- Bubba Wallace
- Harrison Rhodes
- Gray Gaulding
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Landon Cassill