Catchfence

No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet

Race Notes and Quotes

This Week’s Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet at Dover International Speedway … Clint Bowyer will pilot chassis No. 350 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable this weekend at “The Monster Mile.” This Chevrolet Impala, built new in 2011, has seen action three times this season, posting top-15 efforts at Texas Motor Speedway (started-third, finished-second), at the Coca-Cola 600 in May (started-10^th, finished-15^th) and Michigan International Speedway in June (started-27^th, finished-eighth).

Career Dover Stats … This week’s 400 miler marks Bowyer’s 210^th career NSCS start.

• In 11 NSCS starts at Dover, Bowyer owns four top-10 finishes with his best effort of sixth coming earlier this year in the May event.
• He has completed 99.5 percent of the laps (4,376 of 4,400) contested at DIS during his career.
• The Emporia, Kan., native has led 33 laps at the one-mile facility.
• Bowyer owns a 19.4 average starting position and an average finishing position of 14.8.

Red and Yellow … The familiar Cheerios/Hamburger Helper paint scheme is on Bowyer’s No. 33 Chevrolet this weekend.

Sign Here, Please … Bowyer will make two public appearances in the Dover area this weekend on behalf of primary sponsor, General Mills. The first is a “Supermarket Sweeps”-type event on Thursday, September 29, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the GIANT grocery store at 300 Eden Circle in Bear, DE where Bowyer will be signing 300 autographs (wristband distribution begins at 4 p.m.). On Saturday, October 1, Bowyer will also sign 100 autographs for race fans at the GIANT campground store, located on track property near lot 10 off Leipsic Road, beginning at 10:30 a.m. with wristband distribution at 9 a.m.

Two-Time Winner … The 2008 NASCAR Nationwide Series champion visited Dover International Speedway’s Victory Lane twice while running in NASCAR’s junior circuit. Both wins came on the same date, September 26, three years apart from one another, in 2006 and 2009.

Last Time with “Miles” the Monster … Starting from the 22^nd position, Bowyer and the No. 33 BB&T Chevrolet team led 29 laps en route to a sixth-place finish in the FedEx 400 at Dover International Speedway in May.

Near Repeat in New Hampshire … Bowyer was poised for another trip to Victory Lane at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last Sunday afternoon, but the defending SYLVANIA 300 race winner saw his chances of a repeat victory vanish after running out of fuel while leading with just three laps remaining, relegating the No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper team to a 26th-place finish at “The Magic Mile.”

Points Racing … Bowyer remains 13^th in the NSCS driver championship point standings.

CLINT BOWYER QUOTES:

You earned your best finish at Dover International Speedway in May. What did you think about that race?

“Well, we’ve always run well at Dover, but we never finish well there. We should’ve won that race in May. We were leading late and the caution came out. Matt (Kenseth) stayed out or took two tires and we took four. We just got snookered in there. Dover has always been one of my favorite race tracks. I’ve won twice there in a Nationwide Series car, but just haven’t been able to put the finishes together in a Sprint Cup car.”

Your RCR teammate Jeff Burton calls Dover International Speedway a “rhythm” track. What does that mean to you?

“I agree with that. You can fall off rhythm there pretty easy. You have to get in a groove and settle in. You have to get in that rhythm.”

Explain the sensation of speed at Dover International Speedway.