By: Mitchell Breuer

After two straight tenth-place finishes, Clint Bowyer enters the final race of the Round of 16 three points ahead of the cutoff. Despite the advantage though, the driver of the No. 14 is not satisfied with his performance in the opening events of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

“For the time being, I’m frustrated with tonight,” Bowyer said in a post-race Zoom session. “It was a challenge, we struggled all night long; we were just off a beat.”

Fortunately, the next race will be held at Bristol Motor Speedway, a track where Bowyer finished second earlier this year and has five straight top-10’s.With that in mind, he believes the team can place one spot better and grab his first win of the season next weekend.

“I like the racetrack, we got some top-10’s there and we are definitely better but, we got to be great next week,” Bowyer said. “We can do it, it is a good track for us and a lot of fun and, a track I think we can win at.”

The Kansas-native is not letting the nerves of the situation get to him, instead focusing on what he can control, going as far to insinuate the high-pressure situations are the ones he looks forward to.

“You just got to do the best you can and don’t make mistakes,” Bowyer said. “We have cleaned up a lot of those mistakes going into the playoffs and, we are still in this thing. For me, yeah it is nerve-racking, but it is also fun, it is fun to feel that way. It keeps you alive, that is what racing is all about. That is what competition is all about. You go into a weekend and it is just no big deal, hell that ain’t any fun.”

In the past, we have seen drivers be conservative to preserve a decent enough points day to moveforward, essentially being more on the defensive than the offensive. That will not be the case for Bowyer though.

“You always go for the win,” Bowyer said. “If you are in contention, you always go for a win. I have never went to a racetrack thinking I could not win. The day that happens, the day you won’t see me anymore.”