Michael McDowell returns to his #00 Champion Mortgage Toyota Camry at Richmond International Raceway (RIR) after stepping out for three consecutive races for Mike Skinner to evaluate the Michael Waltrip Racing organization. “I learned a lot of positives from Mike Skinner,” McDowell said. “Mike gave me confidence that my feel for the car is correct, so now I need to utilize my practice better. It is important for me to chase a feel and not the board. Mike does that really well it doesn’t matter if he is running 40th, 25th or 20th. He’s still chasing what ultimately he thinks is going to race well. As a young guy and a rookie, you are always trying to prove yourself and how you do that is being up on the board. Sometimes I found myself just trying to put up a solid lap rather than what I needed to run 400 to 500 miles. It’s a balance. You compare yourself to your teammates and you compare yourself to the rookies and the other guys at your level and you are trying to be the best of that group.” McDowell has a new outlook reentering the .75-mile D-shaped oval thanks in part to Skinner and will apply the knowledge he gained from observing practices and races from the spotter’s stand and listening to his team’s communication while absent from the #00 Toyota.(MWR PR)(9-4-2008)
