Clint Bowyer will compete in the Chase for the Championship in only his second full season in Nextel Cup racing.
Clint Bowyer, driver of the 07 Jack Daniel's Chevrolet owned by Richard Childress, is arguably the least heralded driver in the 2007 Nextel Cup Chase for the Championship field based on the fact that he has yet to win a race at this level. Bowyer tends to fly under the radar, however his consistent finishes earned him a shot at the 2007 Nextel Cup championship.
Bowyer is competing in only his second season in Nextel Cup competition. Only Carl Edwards, in 2005, and Denny Hamlin in 2006, clinched a Chase for the Championship berth in less starts.
Clint Bowyer was born on May 30, 1979, and raised in raised in Emporia, Kansas. He began racing professionally in 1985, at the age of five. At the time, young Bowyer was racing motorcross.
By 1996, Bowyer had opted to attempt the transition from two wheels to four wheels, as he began racing Street Stocks at Thunderhill Speedway in Mayetta, Kansas. Bowyer would become a dirt racing legend in the Midwest. He found success at Thunderhill Speedway as he clinched the Modified Championship in 2000, at the age of 21. That same year, Bowyer finished runner-up in the championship standings at Lakeside Speedway. A year later, he recorded 18 victories, and the Modified Championship at Lakeside Speedway.
Bowyer won the 2002 NASCAR Weekly Racing Series Midwest Championship. Even more remarkable was the fact that Bowyer’s Late Model Championship at I-70 Speedway was his first season racing on asphalt.
In 2003, Clint Bowyer joined the NASCAR AutoZone Elite Division Midwest Series where he had moderate success. Bowyer opted to run an ARCA race at Nashville in July of 2003, where he finished second after leading 47 laps. His surprising, yet impressive performance caught the eye of Nextel Cup owner Richard Childress, who was waiting out a rain delay for the Nextel Cup race in Pocono, Pennsylvania.
After meeting with Bowyer, Childress hired the young driver to share a ride in the Busch Series with Kevin Harvick in 2004, and immediately became a contender. In fact, Bowyer nearly won in only his second Busch Series start at Nashville. He was leading late in the race when he made contact with Kyle Busch, relegating him to a fourth place finish.
Bowyer continued to develop as the season progressed, and finished the season with four top fives, and seven top tens in only seventeen starts. He finished second in the Busch Series rookie standings behind Kyle Busch.
Childress named Clint Bowyer as his full-time Busch Series driver for the 2005 season. While Dale Earnhardt Inc. driver Martin Truex Jr emerged as the championship favorite, Bowyer quietly materialized as a threat to Truex Jr’s hopes to repeat as Busch Series champion.
After winning his first career Busch Series race at Nashville in June of 2005, Bowyer began to put the heat on Truex Jr. After the 29th race of the 35-race schedule, Bowyer had pulled to within 26 points of Truex Jr. However, despite winning a race at Memphis late in the season, Truex Jr would hold off Bowyer for the Busch Series championship.
After proving that he can run competitively in the Busch Series on a weekly basis, the decision for Childress to promote Bowyer to the Nextel Cup level was a no-brainer. He replaced Dave Blaney in the # 07 Jack Daniel’s Chevrolet. Bowyer became just one of several talented rookies in the 2006 rookie class. He joined Martin Truex Jr, Denny Hamlin, Reed Sorenson, David Stremme, and J.J. Yeley as a contender for the Raybestos Rookie of the Year award.
Bowyer’s freshmen season in Nextel Cup competition was indeed noteworthy, however, it was not enough to win the Rookie of the Year title. Denny Hamlin was the top rookie, nevertheless, it is impossible to discount Bowyer’s accomplishments in his introductory season. He finished the season second in the rookie standings and seventeenth in the Nextel Cup championship standings. He recorded four top fives and eleven top ten finishes.
In 2007, Bowyer retained the momentum he had built towards the end of the 2006 season. He won his first career Bud Pole Award at Darlington Raceway in May. Darlington is considered to be one of NASCAR’s most intricate tracks to drive, especially for young drivers. After twenty-six races, Bowyer has two top fives and twelve top tens and sits 9th in the Nextel Cup standings. More importantly, he has completed every race thus far in the 2007 Nextel Cup season, and has earned an opportunity to chase the Nextel Cup championship.
Clint Bowyer won his first NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Loudon, New Hampshire on September 16, 2007. It his 64th career Nextel Cup start.
Bowyer finished the season 3rd in the final 2007 championship standings. It was the first time that he finished among the top ten.
