Michael McDowell No. 71 car fails inspection, crew member ejected at Phoenix

Michael McDowell is in his first season at Spire Motorsports. He is hoping that he can bring his winning ways from Front Row over to his new organization. Things have gone well in the early going for McDowell.

Phoenix might not be the best track for McDowell. We saw him flex his talents at Daytona, Atlanta, and COTA. Superspeedways and road courses are his bread and butter. He finished P11, P13 and P11. That is his best start since the 2021 season when he won the Daytona 500 and had top-10s at the Daytona Road Course and Homestead.

Last season, McDowell had a P8 finish at Phoenix. That is his career-best at the track. Not being in a Ford on this big, flat track could make it more difficult to match that result.

Michael McDowell penalized, Cup Series field cleared

Now that Michael McDowell has received the first penalty for the weekend, can we keep it to a minimum in Phoenix? It feels like we have had half a season’s worth of penalties and appeals already within the first month of the season.

Think about it – between the Daytona green flag/caution flag inconsistencies, Atlanta issues, Chase Briscoe penalty from Daytona and winning the appeal, Parker Kligerman DQ and failed appeal, and Austin Cindric COTA penalty – it just feels like way too much.

Phoenix is a straightforward track. It is very technical, at least for many of the racers in the field. To find speed you have to hit your marks and focus the entire time. But we haven’t really seen many on-track penalties or issues like retaliation. And last-lap cautions are a huge rarity at the one-mile oval.

Michael McDowell is off to a tough start this weekend in Phoenix. Let’s hope this is one of the few officiating decisions that NASCAR has to make this week.