"I probably need to be a bit more aggressive," says Michael McDowell after P8 finish at Road America

Michael McDowell drives during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Kwik Trip 250 at Road America (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)

NASCAR’s third road course race has concluded and Michael McDowell is among the drivers who were not satisfied with their performances on Road America last Sunday. McDowell has built his reputation as the strongest driver in road racing, displaying consistency while driving his #34 Ford in the top-10 for most of the day and finishing at P8.

The Front Row Motorsports driver didn’t lead a single lap in Sunday’s 62-lap Kwik Trip 250 but the result continues to stretch out his career-high in the top-10s. Meanwhile, the #34 driver’s seven top-10 finishes are tied for 10th of the season.

Checkered flag 🏁 waves on the #KwikTrip250 at @roadamerica. Four @FordPerformance Mustangs in the Top 10:

6️⃣th @Chris_Buescher
7️⃣th @AustinCindric
8️⃣th @Mc_Driver
🔟th @KevinHarvick

#NASCAR https://t.co/sv104cyd3G

With a top-10 finish, Michael McDowell admitted that it was a solid effort but he feels that he needs to run in the top five and could challenge for the win. According to the 37-year-old, it is good to be disappointed with P8 but his expectations have gone up and he wants to win his first race of the season.

During the post-race interview, McDowell spoke about his performance and said:

“It was a solid effort but not what we hoped for. We didn’t quite have the speed we needed to run up in the top-five and challenge and kind of slid back a little bit. All in all, it was a solid day and we executed well. It is nice to be disappointed with an 8th place finish but our expectations have gone up and we want to challenge for wins. I probably need to be a bit more aggressive in practice of trying things but with that limited practice I am so afraid of dialing us out.”

.@Mc_Driver is eying a top-10, and more, in his @LovesTravelStop Ford Mustang this weekend 😎🏁 https://t.co/thu2ywUDrP

In hindsight, though, an eighth-place finish is not bad for a driver who struggled to find a full-time ride in the Cup Series just a few years ago.

Michael McDowell finds Watkins Glen to get his first win of the 2022 season

Michael McDowell, who has a special connection to the road course, stated that Watkins Glen International is his best path to Victory Lane and has been fast on the speedway too.

McDowell said:

“We just have a little more to gain and I think we will be in the right direction for the [Watkins] Glen and we have been fast on the ovals too. It should be a good month for us coming up. We will take a top-10 and build on it but ultimately it is not what we hoped for.”

The Phoenix, Arizona native has always been competitive when it comes to racing on road courses. McDowell's only Xfinity Series wins came at Road America and in the first two road course races, he finished P13 and P3 at Circuit of the Americas at the Sonoma Raceway, respectively.