Playoff bubble in focus for McDowell, Allmendinger after Sonoma
SONOMA, CALI. — After earning stage points and a top-10 finish at Sonoma, the playoff bubble is now in focus for A.J. Allmendinger and Michael McDowell.
Entering Sonoma, McDowell and Allmendinger chased Daniel Suarez, who held the final playoff spot by six points over Alex Bowman. However, after Sonoma, Bowman now has the spot by three over Suarez.
Regardless, McDowell and Allmendinger scored the fourth and fifth-most points of any driver Sunday. They outscored Suarez by 24 and 23 points, respectively – and Bowman by 15 and 14 points respectively.
Allmendinger and McDowell finished sixth and seventh overall.
McDowell finished fifth and eighth in the stages. Before Sonoma, he was 20th in points, -35 points to a playoff spot. Afterward, he’s 19th, -14 to a playoff spot.
In stage one, Allmendinger finished fourth and earned seven points. Before Sonoma, he was 24th, -53 to a playoff spot. Afterward, he’s 20th, -33 to a spot.
Sunday also marked McDowell’s third top-10 finish of the season and Allmendinger’s second top-10 of the season.
McDowell finished ninth at Gateway last week and sixth at Richmond in April. Meanwhile, Allmendinger’s last top-10 was a sixth-place finish in the February 19 Daytona 500.
PLAYOFF BUBBLE WITH 10 RACES LEFT
IN (13th-16th): Chris Buescher (+102 points), Brad Keselowski (+96), Bubba Wallace (+26), Alex Bowman 331 points (+3)
OUT (17th-28th): Daniel Suarez 328 points (-3), Ty Gibbs (-11), Michael McDowell (-14), A.J. Allmendinger (-33), Austin Cindric (-39), Corey LaJoie (-40), Justin Haley (-47), Todd Gilliland (-52), Ryan Preece (-62), Aric Almirola (-71), Chase Elliott (-84), Austin Dillon (-108)
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com