Clint Bowyer: First year success with MWR exceeded expectations

The 33-year-old signed a three-year deal to drive Waltrip's #15 Toyota Camry late last year, having previous raced for Richard Childress Racing since 2004.

Partnered with veteran crew chief Brian Pattie, Bowyer was competitive through most of 2012 and was a title contender up until the penultimate race at Phoenix, where Jeff Gordon deliberately crashed into him and dashed his hopes.

A second-place finish at the season finale at Homestead - coupled with Jimmie Johnson's retirement - saw Bowyer claim the 'best of the rest' position in the Cup points standings, something he never envisaged even just a few weeks ago.

"When we made the Chase my realistic goal was to be in the top five," he said.

"I thought that was a reachable goal for our race team the way we had been running into the Chase, and to exceed that... you just can't ask for more than that out of a brand-new group like that. I'm very proud of their efforts."

Bowyer added that his team's competitive form this year makes him very optimistic for 2013.

"I'm super-excited about how far we've come in a short amount of time," he said. "We've learned a lot about each other, and I think we're going to be even better next year."

MWR had never managed to get a driver into the Chase prior to 2012, when both Bowyer and Martin Truex Jr reached the title shoot-out.

Bowyer's runner-up finish eclipses the third place in the championship that he managed with Childress in 2007.