racewriter's Blog

The Nationwide Series fellows hit the track Thursday morning for their final practice before they tackle the track in the Camping World 300 on Saturday night here at Daytona International Speedway.  On the top of the charts was Michael McDowell in the No. 00 Toyota.  He’s one of the drivers from the Michael Waltrip camp, and ran in the last three races of the series last season.

Much like many racers, McDowell has been chasing the checkered flag for years...and catching it. After almost 10 years of go-kart racing, this young, aggressive kid from Phoenix, Arizona racked up numerous wins including the 1997 World Karting Association National Championship, two undefeated International Karting Federation seasons, and 18 consecutive main event victories.

McDowell scored four ARCA RE/MAX Series victories in 2007, (the highest win total of all 2007 ARCA competitors). The first at Kentucky in July, the second in Pocono in August, the third Chicagoland where he led practice, qualified on the pole and won the race leading the most laps. Number four was the season-ender at Toledo. He finished second in the series point standings, giving eight-time ARCA champion Frank Kimmel a serious run for title.

Guess what Michael does just about every single day for at least 4 hours each time? He drives a computer racing simulator.

In 2005, McDowell co-drove the No. 19 Make-A-Wish Daytona Prototype with Champ Car veteran Memo Gidley. The duo finished sixth in the Rolex Sports Car Series Championship and, together, they gave Finlay Motorsports its first victory in Mexico City. With that victory, McDowell became the youngest driver ever to finish on the podium of a Rolex Series race with his runner-up finish at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama, and was the first driver since Mario Andretti in 1975 to run both a major open-wheel race and a sports car race in the same weekend. If that was not enough, McDowell also co-drove the No. 60 Finlay Motorsports M3 entry in the Grand-Am Cup Series with team owner Rob Finlay, scoring a podium finish at Daytona.

McDowell again competed in the Rolex Series and the Grand-Am Cup Series in 2006, co-driving once again with Gidley, the duo finished an impressive fourth in the Rolex Series Championship with 11 top-ten finishes. He also co-drove the No. 15 Ford Mustang with Finlay, scoring three podium finishes including a win at Barber Motorsports Park. His success in the sports car ranks did not go unnoticed as Eddie Sharp Racing put the talented McDowell behind the wheel of the No. 2 ARCA RE/MAX Series car for five races.

Racing is in his blood, just like it is other drivers that are in the series. So while his name may be new to some of us, it’s definitely not new to the world of speed. We’ll keep an eye on Mr. McDowelll as the season progresses, but for now, let’s see how he does in the race on Saturday night…I’ll keep you posted!