LUCAMA, NC – Matt Bowling rallied from a disappointing qualifying effort to finish fifth in his first career start in the Championship Auto Racing Series (CARS) Late Model Stock Tour at Southern National Motorsports Park on Sunday.
Bowling qualified 19th for the race, one spot behind eventual second place finisher Tommy Lemons, Jr. Lemons and Bowling both methodically worked their way up to the front of the field throughout the duration of the 150 lap race.
“We just tried to follow [Lemons],” Bowling said. “It got to the point I couldn’t keep up with him. He was really good. But, you know, just glad we got up through there and made a good day out of what could have been a bad day. We messed up a little bit on qualifying.
“We just got a little off on setup. It worked out in the long run. We were able to get up there. We’ve just got to do our homework a little bit and come back a little better.”
Being able to recover and finish in the top-five was important for Bowling who, as of now, hopes to contend for the CARS Tour championship.
“I believe we’ll try these first couple races,” Bowling stated. “It’s going pretty good right now. We’ll see how it keeps going.”
Bowling is a two-time champion at South Boston Speedway, having won his second title last season. Along with his championships, Bowling has won the two biggest Late Model Stock Car races that won’t be run in 2016 – the Hampton Heat 200 at Langley Speedway and the Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown, which was run at South Boston prior to its move to Langley and the following cancellation.
Those notes on his resume would make him a favorite to win the CARS Tour championship if he decides to run the full season. And that’s exactly what Bowling expects, to be a contender.
“If we can get things worked out, I think we will,” Bowling remarked. “HC Sellers and everybody, we’ll figure it out. We’ll just keep digging and do some more testing and hopefully we’ll get better.”
Marquis comes from St. Charles, Maryland and has a widespread background in journalism, having covered politics in Washington and Maryland as well as nearly every form of auto racing, including NASCAR, IndyCar, AMA Motocross and IHRA Drag Racing. Now living near Emerald Isle, North Carolina, Marquis covers Late Model Stock Cars and Super Late Models in the Carolinas and Virginia.