TALLADEGA, Ala. — If there’s a race track in the Chase that can be a massive game changer, Clint Bowyer believes Talladega is it.
Bowyer, who won the last two fall races at the 2.66-mile track, hopes Sunday’s Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 affords him the opportunity to gain significant ground on the three drivers ahead of him in the standings, Chase leader Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin.
“I think this track is the reason why everybody in the Chase is still in it,” Bowyer said Friday. “This is the only track that all of us can get wiped out, or maybe all of us but one or two . . . This is a dangerous wild-card race for the Chase, and you’ve just got to go out there and be as careful as you can and also be as aggressive as you can and try to get yourself in the situation to win this thing.”
Bowyer, who trails Keselowski by 26 points, underscored just how important Sunday’s race could be.
“This can be a game-changer,” he said. “This is one of the tracks that can separate somebody and possibly win you a championship. It seems like each and every week these first few (Chase races). It’s been a point or two here, a point or two there.
“This is one that can swing 20, 30 points and take you out of the running or push you into it. . . . I love racing here. It’s so much fun. It’s such a thrill to be able to go around there and know that the storm is brewing, and all hell is fixing to break loose, and you’re fixing to be a part of it.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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