Michael McDowell Strong In Qualifying Before Fading At Gateway
6 months agoAfter never winning a pole before this year, Michael McDowell won his third pole on Saturday at Gateway, tying him with Kyle Larson for the most poles this season. While McDowell led 40 laps yesterday (the most he has ever led on an oval), Christopher Bell passed him for the lead late in Stage 1. McDowell never made it back to the top 10 afterward except for a stint in Stage 3 when he was off pit sequence; he ended up finishing 25th, one lap down. Although it wasn't surprising McDowell fell through the field after winning the pole, it was fairly surprising that he won the pole and held the lead for so long to begin with. Perhaps it shouldn't have been since the Front Row Motorsports cars are considered de facto Penske cars this year and the Penske cars were also very fast.
Source: Racing Reference
Source: Racing Reference