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McDowell hopes to avoid "desperation" in NASCAR Cup playoffs

Michael McDowell learned a valuable lesson in his previous NASCAR playoff appearance, one he hopes pays off with a better run in 2023.

Jim Utter

Published: Aug 31, 2023, 9:57 PM

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Michael McDowell, Front Row Motorsports, Love's Travel Stops Ford Mustang

McDowell earned his first career Cup win in the season-opening Daytona 500 in 2021, which locked him into the playoffs for the first time just as the season was getting underway.

He and his No. 34 Front Row Motorsports team didn’t win again before the start of the playoffs, and felt they needed to focus on getting a win in the opening round if there was any hope of advancing.

“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned from 2021 is I felt like we didn’t have quite enough speed to just go to (Darlington) and run our race. I felt like I had to hit a home run,” McDowell said.

“That was kind of the mindset – go in there all-out, taking big chances, taking risks.”

It didn’t work.

McDowell ended up wrecking out of the playoff opener at Darlington after 30 laps, which put him in an enormous points deficit. He was eliminated from further title contention after the first round.

Michael McDowell, Front Row Motorsports, Love's Travel Stops Ford Mustang

Photo by: Gavin Baker / NKP / Motorsport Images

“That crash was pretty much the end of our playoffs. When you have an experience, you learn from it,” he said. “You fast forward to the end of that year and look back at those first three races and how the standings turned out and you’re like, ‘Awe, we didn’t have to hit a home run. We just needed to run 10th to 15th each race and we would have made it.’

“The big difference this year is we come in with more experience and more speed and more potential out of our race cars and our team. That helps – not having to have a miracle run to do well.

“The approach going in is don’t beat ourselves, execute and no mistakes. If we have a 12th-place care, we take that and move on and not have that desperation. That desperation got me in trouble last time.”

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