Getty Michael McDowell waves to fans at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The driver of the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang is in the midst of a hot streak. Michael McDowell posted his fifth top-10 of the year at Charlotte Motor Speedway and tied a personal best.
The 2021 Daytona 500 champion has yet to reach Victory Lane in the Next Gen era, but he has achieved another important goal. He tied his previous career-best mark of five top-10 finishes, which he set during the 2021 campaign. This run includes four top-10s in the past six races, which have helped McDowell secure an average finish of 18.3 with only one DNF.
The driver of the No. 34 Ford Mustang is currently below the playoff cutline. He is 22nd in points with 274, which is just one behind Chris Buescher and 15 behind Kansas winner Kurt Busch. Securing a spot in the playoffs will not be a simple task, but McDowell has 12 more races to make some positive moves.
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McDowell Predicted His Personal Hot Streak Ahead of the Season
GettyMichael McDowell made strong comments about his team before the Daytona 500.
The strong performances have caught some people by surprise, but McDowell is not among this group. He actually predicted this hot streak prior to the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
“Timing is important, and that’s really what it came down to is, right now is the right time before the season starts with a lot of momentum going into Daytona 500,” McDowell told Heavy ahead of the Daytona 500. “But with this Next Gen car, it’s really cool to see new brands come into our sport.
“And then just for me, I think that even though I’ve been in the sport a long time, I’m at my prime. It’s the best I’ve ever been, the most prepared I’ve ever been, the best program, the best team I’ve ever been with. I think we’re gonna shine this year with this Next Gen car.”
McDowell followed that statement up by kicking off his year with a seventh-place finish in the Crown Jewel race. He failed to finish the second race of the year, which took place at Auto Club Speedway, but he has since completed every event on the schedule while contending for multiple top-10s.
McDowell Has Some Favorable Tracks on the Upcoming Schedule
Stacking more points and contending for wins is not going to be a simple task for McDowell and the No. 34 team. He will have to turn in some strong performances at a variety of tracks where he has mixed success.
There are two tracks, in particular, where McDowell has turned in some strong performances. He finished eighth overall during a 2020 race at Pocono Raceway, a track where he will compete on July 24.
McDowell has also posted his best finishes at the last track on the regular-season schedule. He has made 22 starts at Daytona International Speedway during his Cup Series career, and he has posted eight top-10 finishes with three top-fives. This list includes McDowell’s first career win in the 2021 Daytona 500.
The driver of the No. 34 FRM Ford Mustang has not performed as well during the Coke Zero Sugar 400. However, he posted a fourth-place finish in the 2017 race while driving the No. 95 for Leavine Family Racing.
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