Michael McDowell was on the cusp of just his third top-5 finish at Watkins Glen last weekend. This would’ve been a huge result for the veteran driver who was unable to advance into the playoffs. But just when he was about to round off a solid day at the 2.45-mile road course, he found himself on the receiving end of the late race chaos.

Zane Smith was the one who foiled McDowell’s chances of his third top-5 finish at the very last lap of the race. Go Bowling at the Glen was a wildcard race, one that led to many upsets and surprising results. All bets were off given how aggressive the drivers were, and trying to make the most of this trend, Smith bumped into the #34 car out of the equation and ended the race in P5.

Michael McDowell didn’t like being roughed up on the white flag lap and after ending the race on P7 he confronted the young driver. Although he looked animated in trying to get his message across to Smith, there was no bad blood between the two drivers. In fact, McDowell understood why the rookie driver forced the issue late in the race and sympathized with his situation.

Michael McDowell isn’t looking to repay the favor to Smith after the Watkins Glen faceoff

The FRM driver isn’t known for his theatrics or confrontation after the race. Therefore, his questioning of the young driver’s late-race tactics was surprising. Although it looked like McDowell was angry and trying to intimidate Smith, in reality, he was just having a normal conversation.

Sharing his perspective on the battle he had with Smith leading up to the bump and run, McDowell stated, “I mean, Zane and I had just a normal conversation. I haven’t seen that video interaction, but neither one of us were heated. Nothing, no big deal, just a racing incident; he drove in there and got to my door. then he went onto the rest of the lap and then going back into turn 7 coming to the checkered, he just squared me up and knocked me out of the lane to get the spot.”

Zane Smith is currently auditioning to find a new ride next year after he was left high and dry by Trackhouse Racing. The 25-year-old is on loan at Spire and will be replaced by McDowell; this was despite him signing a long-term deal with Justin Marks & Co. So currently, he is trying to raise his stock to attract potential opportunities, and this caused him to throw caution to the wind at Glen.

McDowell has found himself in a similar situation, trying to survive at the Cup level. Therefore, he could relate to Smith’s desperate moves on track, who is on a mission to prove his worth. “I mean, the guy has been kicked in the stomach, right? Lost his Cup ride, you know he signed a long-term deal that turned out to be not so long-term, and I understand that and lived that. I totally get it,” the veteran driver said on the Out of the Groove show by Eric Estepp.

Although the 2024 NASCAR season has been tough on McDowell so far. He can look ahead to his new chapter at Spire Motorsports next year. It was indeed a surprise for the community over his decision to leave FRM, despite having contributed to their success since 2018.

New opportunities lined up for McDowell at Spire Motorsports

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FRM was considered a mid-pack team unable to compete against the big dogs of the sport. However, with McDowell’s arrival in 2018, the team started to turn a corner for good. They won the Daytona 500 in 2021 and repeated this feat with the Next-Gen car clinching the road course race at Brickyard last year. From a mid-pack outfit to a competitive playoff team, it looked like McDowell would lead the charge for the team’s ambitious plans going forward.

For those who have lost track of FRM’s moves this year, they purchased a third charter for the organization and secured tier-1 team status with their OEM partner Ford. Not only that, they secured a technical alliance with Team Penske. So, you see, McDowell’s departure from the team didn’t make sense with how the team was moving forward. However, the driver was looking for an environment where his influence could shape the team’s moves, and Spire was able to offer him just that.

“More than anything for me was just the ability to have a lot of influence in what’s going to happen over there. Part of what excited me about is being able to go and handpick the guys that I want to bring and the guys that we need to go get…Everything has run its course, right? I’ve been at Front Row a long time, I’ve loved it, I’m super thankful for everything that we’ve accomplished together. But, it’s time for a new season, a new opportunity, and I’m looking forward to it,” he concluded.

It will be interesting to see how Michael McDowell progresses with a new outfit next year. Like FRM, Spire has also aggressively pushed for being a competitive race team. And the inclusion of one of the best road course racers in the Cup Series does add more strength to their project.