McDowell Aims To Earn a Name By Driving Well
NASCAR rookie Michael McDowell was involved in a single-car crash at Texas Motor Speedway that left his car looking like this, but his scratch-less survival has made him a racing circuit celebrity.
(Matt Slocum - AP)
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Sunday, April 6, 2008; Page D04
FORT WORTH, April 5 -- Michael McDowell came to Texas Motor Speedway as a NASCAR rookie known best for infuriating Jeff Burton during his Sprint Cup debut.
Then the kid known as "McDizzle" barrel-rolled his car around the track in the most spectacular crash in recent history.
Now he's an overnight sensation, booked solid on national TV shows to discuss the wreck he lived to talk about. It's created mixed feelings for McDowell, who didn't quite want to become famous this way.
"I have two feelings about it -- one is that I want to be in the media spotlight for the right reason, and that's for being a good racecar driver and running well," McDowell said Saturday. "The second part of it is that you'll take it whenever you can get it. Especially with the way this sport is right now. We don't want to go out there and wreck cars to get on TV, that's never the plan.
"If you're going to do one as spectacular as we did . . . we'll definitely soak up as much as we can get."
The wreck during Friday's qualifying session capped an auspicious first week on the job for McDowell. He debuted last Sunday at Martinsville Speedway with a decent run for a rookie on a difficult short track. But when his desire not to lose another lap interfered with Burton's attempt to pass, the 23-year-old newcomer angered the veteran.
Burton offered a blistering critique of McDowell immediately after the race, and the criticism spoiled what should have been a shining moment for McDowell, who finished 26th.
Michael Waltrip Racing doesn't yet have the resources to field Nationwide cars or trucks for McDowell, so moving him up was the only option.
"The seat that was available at Michael Waltrip Racing was for the Sprint Cup Series. I didn't walk in there and say, 'Hey, I'm a Sprint Cup driver. I deserve it. I want to be in it,' " he said. "For sure, it will be a tough year and I'm going to have to learn. It's tough to learn at this level. Do I belong? No, I don't belong, but I'm going to work hard to get to the point where I do."
ยท NATIONWIDE SERIES: Kyle Busch won at Texas Motor Speedway in dominating fashion, leading 126 of the 200 laps and finishing more than a second ahead of Jeff Burton. With an average speed of 151.708 mph, it was fastest Nationwide race at the 1 1/2 -mile high-banked track.
