Nobody gave Clint Bowyer a shot

Clint Bowyer pulled off a surprising win in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at New Hampshire International Speedway. It was the first of his Cup career and his first of the season.
Bowyer entered the New Hampshire race, the first in the Chase for the Nextel Cup, as the only driver in the Chase field without a win.
Drivers Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart said everyone in the NASCAR garage was happy to see Bowyer finally win his first race.
"To see a guy, especially when you are up in New York and nobody gave Clint Bowyer a shot at the championship," said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "I think today was a real statement for him. I am sure he has a little grin going as well. I think it just proves that anybody in the top-12 can win this championship. If you are going to win your first one, man, this is the way and time to do it. That was pretty cool. He was dominant; he was so stong today."
Stewart said Bowyer was the class of the field in the race.
It is fun to have watched guys in the last nine years get their first wins; it is normally a real dominant performance," said Stewart, driver of the No. 20 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing. "That is what really makes these first wins special. You look at somebody like Clint who has had good cars and really has made a big step from last year, his rookie year, he has been in a couple positions to actually get a win this year, or at least a top-five and a shot at winning, then something has always happened. But a day like today, there was nothing going to happen to him. He was just rock-solid and strong all day. It is fun when you have got a car that drives like that, it makes that first win very memorable."