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<< Previous   of   Next >> AP Photo/Terry Renna  (click to enlarge) Clint Bowyer (center) celebrates with crew members in victory lane after winning the Nationwide Series Subway Jalapeno 250 auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., Friday, July 3, 2009.   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Report scores and results to 425-339-3470 or 1-866-6-SCORES (Call after 4:30 p.m.) E-mail information including items for Tuesday's Communities Sports Roundup and Thursday's Outdoor Calendar, to sports@heraldnet.com Kevin Brown, Sports Editor kbrown@heraldnet.com   Published: Friday, July 3, 2009 Bowyer races to 1st NASCAR Nationwide win of season By Mark Long Associated Press DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Clint Bowyer's first victory of the season gave Richard Childress Racing a much-needed boost. Bowyer won the Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway on Friday night, holding off Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards in a green-white-checkered finish. "These guys never give up, the guys at RCR and the ladies," Childress said. "They just dig and dig. We've been a little bit off, and when you get a little bit off, everybody wants to kind of kick you. We just take that lick and come on back." Bowyer, the defending series champion, was the leader when a multicar accident brought out the caution with six laps to go in the Subway Jalapeno 250. That set up a final two-lap overtime sprint, and Bowyer lined up inside of Edwards for the double-file restart. With Busch pushing him from behind, Bowyer raced to the front. He didn't have to deal with a challenge from Busch because an accident in the fourth turn brought out a race-ending caution, giving RCR its first win of the year. Busch finished second, followed by Edwards, Joey Logano and Kasey Kahne. Bowyer's win might not do much to soothe Childress' problems in the Sprint Cup series, where Bowyer (15th), Jeff Burton (16th), Casey Mears (20th) and Kevin Harvick (27th) are all out of championship contention. Then again, a trip to Victory Lane could raise morale across the board. "At RCR, things haven't been the best this year and you need something," Bowyer said. "You're always looking for that little thing, and hopefully this victory will give everyone a pep in their step and some excitement." This one wasn't a fluke. Bowyer had the car to beat much of the night. He started on the pole and spent much of the night running up front. He moved to the front for good with about 30 laps to go, often driving away from his competitors down the backstretch. "That was the best we had," Busch said. "Clint's car was better than ours tonight. We have some work to do before coming back here. Brad Keselowski finished sixth, followed by Brian Vickers, Justin Allgaier, David Ragan and Harvick. Kerry Earnhardt and Chase Austin had a rough night. They were involved in the first accident on lap nine, then got together again to bring out the fifth caution. Austin lost control of his car and collected Earnhardt and Robert Richardson Jr. Earnhardt slammed into the outside wall, veered across the track and then tagged the inside retaining wall. Earnhardt and Austin both were treated for heat-related injuries. Kertus Davis also ended his night in the care center. He spun coming out of a turn and started a five-car accident on lap 95. His car caught fire as he drove through the grass, but escaped just after it came to a stop. He was treated and released. Davis' wreck set up the frantic finish, and Bowyer did the rest. He wanted to make a pit stop and get new tires, but his crew chief made the call to keep him on the track. It paid off, too, as he stayed out front and ended up celebrating his first Nationwide victory since winning at Bristol in March 2008. "It's been tough this year," said Bowyer, who won for the first time in six starts in the second-tier series. "It's been tough on Richard, tough on everybody. Just real proud of everybody at RCR." NASCAR Nationwide Series Subway Jalapena 250 Finish/Start/Car No./Name/Make/Sponsor/Pts-Bonus/Laps Comp/Cond. 1 1 29 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Holiday Inn / Holiday Inn Express 195/10 102 Running 2 19 18 Kyle Busch Toyota NOS Energy Drink 175/5 102 Running 3 11 60 Carl Edwards Ford Save-A-Lot 165/0 102 Running 4 23 20 Joey Logano Toyota Sport Clips 160/0 102 Running 5 15 10 Kasey Kahne Toyota McDonald's McCafe 155/0 102 Running 6 4 88 Brad Keselowski Chevrolet Klondike 150/0 102 Running 7 26 32 Brian Vickers Toyota Dollar General 146/0 102 Running 8 31 12 Justin Allgaier * Dodge Verizon Wireless 142/0 102 Running 9 2 6 David Ragan Ford Discount Tire 143/5 102 Running 10 3 33 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet VFW 134/0 102 Running 11 30 99 Michael Waltrip Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 135/5 102 Running 12 36 66 Steve Wallace Chevrolet US Fidelis 127/0 102 Running 13 39 47 Michael McDowell * Toyota Tom's Snacks 124/0 102 Running 14 6 16 Matt Kenseth Ford CitiFinancial 126/5 102 Running 15 37 61 Matt Carter Ford Specialty Racing 118/0 102 Running 16 32 28 Kenny Wallace Chevrolet U.S. Border Patrol 120/5 102 Running 17 41 62 Brendan Gaughan * Chevrolet 5-Hour Energy Extra Strength 112/0 102 Running 18 40 11 Scott Lagasse Jr. * Toyota E-Pak Manufacturing 109/0 102 Running 19 24 38 Jason Leffler Toyota Great Clips 106/0 102 Running 20 12 275 Bobby Gerhart Chevrolet Lucas Oil Products 103/0 102 Running 21 34 40 Scott Wimmer Chevrolet Stop Repair B ills.com 100/0 102 Running 22 16 27 Jason Keller Ford Scott Products / Wal-Mart 97/0 102 Running 23 38 234 Tony Raines Chevrolet Gander Mountain / Remington 99/5 102 Running 24 14 87 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet NEMCO Motorsports 91/0 102 Running 25 43 183 John Borneman III Ford Twisted X Boots / Borneman Plastering / Red Line Oil 88/0 101 Accident 26 28 23 Robert Richardson Jr. Chevrolet Mahindra Tractors 85/0 101 Accident 27 5 42 David Gilliland Dodge ResortQuest.com 82/0 101 Accident 28 33 24 Eric McClure Ford Hefty 84/5 101 Running 29 29 1 Mike Bliss Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 76/0 100 Accident 30 42 01 Danny O'Quinn Jr. Chevrolet Venom Energy 73/0 99 Running 31 20 58 Mike Harmon Chevrolet Cavi Clothing / Macy's 70/0 97 Running 32 10 89 Morgan Shepherd Chevrolet Lagina Plumbing / Eldora Speedway 67/0 95 Accident 33 18 04 Kertus Davis Chevrolet NuTone Heating & Cooling Products 64/0 94 Accident 34 13 05 Jeff Green Chevrolet Sour Patch 61/0 94 Accident 35 9 15 Michael Annett * Toyota Ventrilo / Pilot Travel Centers 58/0 84 Accident 36 22 09 John Wes Townley * Ford Zaxby's 60/5 81 Running 37 35 07 Chase Austin Chevrolet Cavi Clothing / Macy's 57/5 76 Accident 38 8 31 Kerry Earnhardt Chevrolet Liberty Port 49/0 76 Accident 39 21 49 Mark Green Chevrolet GetMoreVacati ons.com 46/0 62 Accident 40 7 5 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Fastenal 43/0 58 Accident 41 27 81 Patrick Sheltra Dodge D.H. Griffin Companies 40/0 57 Accident 42 17 52 Donnie Neuenberger Chevrolet Quaker City Castings 37/0 9 Accident 43 25 90 Johnny Chapman Chevrolet MSRP Motorsports 34/0 2 Drive Shaft READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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