“You Cannot Be Serious” – NASCAR’s Underdog Was in Disbelief After Second Consecutive Pit Lane Penalty

When the under-funded Front Row Motorsports’ driver Michael McDowell conquered the road course at Indianapolis, he became a hero for the racing community. He cemented his place in the final 16 with the win and was the talk of the town for the next few days. The only question was if Michael was a onetime-wonder or if he could repeat the magic again. At the Watkins Glen race last weekend, we got an answer. But not one that was favorable for Michael or his team.

In a race that got off to a brilliant start, fate played the enemy and led him to rougher roads. Two penalties and an engine malfunction later, Michael was forced to retreat from the contest. NASCAR recently revealed radio talk from the race and we got an insight into how things played out exactly. The No. 34 driver was just as surprised as the rest of us at his bad luck.

A flying start pulled down by an out-of-the-blue punch

Michael had started the race in confidence from his previous win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He looked intimidating from behind the wheel of his Ford Mustang. As the car cruised through the lanes at Watkins Glen, he got the better of fellow contenders like William Byron and Denny Hamlin to take the lead. In the laps that followed, Michael retained his lead and won the first stage of the race. But that’s where the trouble began for him.

On ending his stage and stopping at the pit, the 38-year-old went through too many other empty boxes. This attracted a penalty that enabled William Byron to propel to the lead. When Jusan Hamilton, event director, informed his crew of the decision, they all knew that they’d taken a big hit. But Michael’s spotter Clayton Hughes assured Michael that he wasn’t out of the race yet. Little did the spotter know about what was to follow.

Michael McDowell’s resilience goes in vain with consecutive blows

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Despite the penalty pushing him many spots to the back, Michael McDowell juiced the maximum out of his Ford Mustang. He climbed the ladder, showcasing absolute grit and resilience. He rallied up the leaderboard to 9th position when crew chief Travis Peterson called for a pit stop once again. Upon re-entry to the track, the driver would’ve hoped to see the caution flag to use the opportunity and gain more spots. However, things only went further downhill.

Jusan Hamilton got back on the radio and informed the crew that one of their members had been over the wall too soon when Michael had come in. This forced the crew to have the driver take a pass through the pit road again. A devastated Michael was caught on the radio asking, “You cannot be serious!”

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As Michael McDowell paid the charges, William Byron had gone a long way ahead. All chances of winning were completely gone. But fate had one more trick up its sleeve. In what was the final blow to Michael McDowell’s day, his engine faced some mechanical issues. He barely made it back to his pit. When he did, things were officially recognized as being over for him. With 15 laps to go, he had to retire his Mustang from the race.

Although Michael and his team have entered the playoffs, they would have hoped to make the most of their positive momentum, going to Watkins Glen. After all, it is not every day you see a relatively small team like Front Row Motorsports give it back to the bigger guys on the field. Had they been able to stay consistent with the flawless performance they put on in stage 1, the NASCAR world would’ve seen a different winner at the Glen. Nevertheless, Michael’s ability to traverse the road courses will certainly take him and his team a long way in the months to come.

Attention now turns to the Daytona International Speedway for the final race of this year’s regular season. This is where we will get our answer about who the playoff 16 will be. Watch the NASCAR section of Essentially Sports for further updates on the coming weekend!

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