Graham Bowlin clinches eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series playoff berth with walk-off victory at Pocono

The Tricky Triangle once again delivered on late-season drama.

Weeks after a heartbreaking loss at Iowa Speedway, Graham Bowlin’s final chance at qualifying for the 2024 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series playoffs hinged on taking the checkered flag in the Maconi Setup Shop 150 at Pocono Raceway on Tuesday night.

With countless scenarios for the final three spots in the playoff field, the easiest path for Bowlin and 13 other drivers in the field was to win and get in. The QuikTrip Pioneers Gaming driver found himself in range on the final restart in triple eNASCAR Overtime. Coming to the white flag, Bowlin pulled off a three-wide move on William Byron eSports’ Tucker Minter and OXYGEN Esports’ Femi Olatunbosun to take the lead for the first time all night. Olatunbosun and Minter gave chase, but Bowlin held on for his first win since 2022 to clinch his place in the playoff field.

“I wasn’t lifting all night, man,” Bowlin said-post race. “Clear enough, everywhere. We got bullied last race (at Indy) a couple of times, so it is what it is. I’m in the playoffs now because of it. That’s how you have to race, I guess. You have to nudge people a little bit.”

Both Graham Bowlin (#48) and Femi Olatunbosun (#22) receive damage on Lap 1 incident at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

It wasn’t an easy path at all for the 2022 Championship 4 competitor. Starting in 38th, Bowlin was collected in the opening lap fiasco with Olatunbosun and others. In the three-act play of a night at Pocono, Bowlin spent the first portion fixing damages to get back into the fight. Through the second, clean and green act, he was still down in 25th position when the caution flew next with 14 laps to go. Missing the multiple incidents in between then and the final restart, Bowlin restarted in fifth, and thankfully for him, the field kept it green on the last attempt.

Entering Turn 3, Olatunbosun and Minter were side-by-side for the lead. Bowlin lunged even lower, and was able to clear the two before heading down the frontstretch for the penultimate time. It was clear that they were all trying as hard as possible, as Bowlin and Olatunbosun both collected the wall out of Turn 2 on the final lap. Minter gave it one last look into Turn 3, but as they rounded towards the line, Bowlin had just enough to cover.

Bowlin advanced into the playoffs with Parker White (Williams Esports) and Nick Ottinger (William Byron eSports) taking the final two spots based on points.

ACT I

Donovan Strauss leads from the pole position at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

On pole for the third time in his career, Williams Esports’ Donovan Strauss also fell into the category of winning and getting in. Strauss led the opening act ahead of Spire Motorsports’ Casey Kirwan and the rest of the field.

In the first 15 laps, there were three cautions, all significant in the race for the playoffs in their own right. The first came on the first lap, as Olatunbosun and Garrett Manes (fgrAccel eRacing) found themselves in a tight four-wide situation. Contact sent Olatunbosun spinning, collecting many hopefuls, including Bowlin and Atlanta winner Malik Ray. Ray came into the evening two points below the top 20 cut line, the threshold needed to be playoff eligible. The damage was severe enough that Ray, who started 14th, never entered the top 10 at any point, ultimately dashing his playoff hopes.

The other winner that was teetering the top 20 line was QuikTrip Pioneers Gaming’s other driver, Wyatt Tinsley. Tinsley entered tied for 20th, and needed to make sure drivers such as Ray, Michael Guest (23XI), Olatunbosun, Ryan Luza (M80), and Manes didn’t end up ahead of him by the end of the night. Tinsley barely avoided the opening lap calamity, but continued to straddle the line through the entire night.

ACT II

Steven Wilson (#10) and Femi Olatunbosun (#22) pit under green at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

The midsection of the event turned Pocono green, and saw a multitude of strategies form over the next 30 laps. Strauss and a good chunk of the field opted to stay out during the three opening yellows, and thus would be required to pit at some point for at least some fuel. Others, like Cody Byus (Pittsburgh Knights) and Minter, opted to top off on the third caution in hopes to stretch their fuel to the end.

Indianapolis set a tone that carried into Pocono for pit strategy. Both tracks have the unique trait that allows drivers to pit and not lose a lap, so drivers such as Olatunbosun and Steven Wilson (M80) took advantage with the undercut. Many drivers, including Strauss and Kirwan, reacted in the following laps. It ultimately led to Olatunbosun ahead of the cars that had pitted, but there were still a number of cars on track trying to stretch fuel.

Kaden Honeycutt (#8) spins into the wall after contact with Steven Wilson (#10) at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

The caution flew once again on the 47th lap when Kaden Honeycutt (JR Motorsports) went around off the nose of Wilson. The damage was enough to end Honeycutt’s chances at the playoffs, and sent the field into a split decision for pit stops under caution.

Fresh tires would probably be the right call if the race could go green to the end. Track position would likely be the answer if the race devolved into a caution fest. As it turns out, the latter came into play, but even the leader wouldn’t be immune from the calamity.

ACT III

Collin Bowden (#17) incurs a late-race penalty for jumping the start at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

The race would eventually find its way into eNASCAR Overtime, but just before that, things got extremely silly. Up front, Byus held the field in his grasp on some of the oldest tires with Collin Bowden (RFK Racing), Olatunbosun, and Minter all in the conversation. On the Lap 58 restart, with three laps to go in regulation, Bowden got the jump on Byus a little too well, and was penalized automatically for jumping the restart.

Utilizing the built-in start zones, the leader has to jump before the second place car, and has the entirety of the restart area to push the pedal. Bowden went fractions of a second before Byus, incurring the black flag. Bowden pleaded his case with race control and stayed on the track, now as the leader for the first attempt at eNASCAR Overtime, but disappeared as the field hit the line, giving control back to Byus for the moment.

Femi Olatunbosun (#22) takes the lead over Tucker Minter (#97) as the field crashes behind them at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

Kirwan saw the opportunity to strike and sent it into Turn 1 as Byus came down to cover. Byus seemed to get his car in front of Kirwan with enough time, but Kirwan was committed, the two eventually spinning out and causing the huge one. Olatunbosun and Minter were both able to squeak by, as was Ottinger and Bowlin. Wilson also got through, but lost his nose in the process.

Another quick caution on the second attempt set up the field for a third and final attempt at finishing the race. Bowlin, in fifth, would essentially need the entire lap to stay green to have a chance. If a caution flew, that would end the race, and his chances at advancing. Olatunbosun needed the win to make the playoffs as well, but only if he could get inside the top 20, which meant he would need Tinsley to finish enough points behind him for the positions to swap.

It didn’t matter for Olatunbosun, as he was ultimately passed by both Bowlin and Minter, but with his third place finish to Tinsley’s 10th, the seven-point lead that Tinsley had became a one-point deficit in the final regular season standings. Tinsley in 21st, and Ray in 22nd, missed out on the 2024 eNASCAR Playoffs, despite both having wins on the season. Parker White was collected in the huge wreck, finishing 34th, but had just enough over Nick Ottinger should there only be one points spot available. With Tinsley falling out by a single point, Ottinger’s eighth place was plenty, as he finished 25 points ahead of Kirwan for the final transfer spot.

Graham Bowlin (#48) passes three-wide for the lead coming to the white flag at Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series results from Round 14 at Pocono were as follows:

Fin.	St.	No.	Name	Team	Laps	Interval	Led	Best	Pts
1	38	48	Graham A. Bowlin	QuikTrip Pioneers Gaming	72	0.000	2	53.415	40
2	17	97	Tucker Minter	William Byron eSports	72	-0.078	0	53.730	35
3	15	22	Femi Olatunbosun	OXYGEN Esports	72	-0.095	8	53.477	34
4	25	29	Jimmy Mullis	Kevin Harvick Inc.	72	-0.171	0	53.624	33
5	7	10	Steven Wilson	M80	72	-0.298	0	53.473	32
6	32	38	Michael Cosey Jr	Front Row Motorsports	72	-0.310	0	53.444	31
7	11	88	Briar LaPradd	JR Motorsports	72	-0.427	0	53.492	30
8	5	25	Nick Ottinger	William Byron eSports	72	-0.532	0	53.468	29
9	34	3	Jonathon Dulaney	Team Dillon Esports	72	-0.531	14	53.644	28
10	27	20	Wyatt Tinsley	QuikTrip Pioneers Gaming	72	-0.763	0	53.469	27
11	22	89	Garrett Lowe	BS+COMPETITION	72	-0.836	0	54.010	26
12	29	54	Daniel Faulkingham	Joe Gibbs Racing	72	-0.932	0	53.741	25
13	3	66	Kollin Keister	Kanaan Esports	72	-1.084	0	53.539	24
14	13	18	Bobby Zalenski	Joe Gibbs Racing	72	-1.404	0	53.665	23
15	36	23	Keegan Leahy	23XI	72	-1.556	0	53.879	22
16	4	5	Zack Novak	OXYGEN Esports	72	-1.713	0	53.536	21
17	9	80	Ryan Luza	M80	72	-1.929	0	53.650	20
18	24	62	Matt Bussa	Kevin Harvick Inc.	72	-2.043	0	53.463	19
19	37	33	Taylor Hurst	Team Dillon Esports	72	-2.206	0	54.040	18
20	14	7	Malik Ray	Spire Motorsports	72	-2.776	0	53.686	17
21	19	99	Matthew Zwack	Nitro Circus Sim Racing	72	-2.809	0	53.404	16
22	8	14	Seth DeMerchant	fgrAccel eRacing	72	-2.848	6	53.514	15
23	39	36	Quami Scott	Letarte eSports	72	-2.875	0	53.813	14
24	31	69	Ray Alfalla	eRacr	72	-3.034	0	53.677	13
25	6	41	Dylan Duval	Nitro Circus Sim Racing	72	-3.456	0	53.503	12
26	2	77	Casey Kirwan	Spire Motorsports	72	-3.521	2	53.386	11
27	33	42	Tyler Garey	eRacr	72	-7.445	0	54.165	10
28	26	12	Garrett Manes	fgrAccel eRacing	72	-8.085	0	53.429	9
29	16	40	Dylan Ault	Letarte eSports	71	DNF	0	53.513	8
30	23	45	Michael Guest	23XI	71	-1L	0	53.934	7
31	18	90	Jordy Lopez	BS+COMPETITION	70	-2L	0	53.538	6
32	30	55	Ryan Doucette	Pittsburgh Knights	65	-7L	0	54.499	5
33	10	27	Cody Byus	Pittsburgh Knights	63	DNF	15	53.872	4
34	21	53	Parker White	Williams Esports	63	-9L	0	53.461	3
35	1	51	Donovan Strauss	Williams Esports	63	-9L	25	53.577	2
36	20	17	Collin Bowden	RFK Racing	61	DNF	0	53.590	1
37	28	34	Darik Bourdeau	Front Row Motorsports	51	-21L	0	53.430	1
38	12	8	Kaden Honeycutt	JR Motorsports	47	-25L	0	53.465	1
39	40	6	Timothy Holmes	RFK Racing	13	DNF	0	53.900	1
40	35	11	Vicente Salas	Kanaan Esports	13	-59L	0	53.669	1

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Driver’s Standings through Round 14 are as follows:

Steven Wilson, 449 (3 WINS)
Parker White, 371
Nick Ottinger, 366
Vicente Salas, 362 (1 WIN)
Bobby Zalenski, 359 (2 WINS)
Tucker Minter, 343 (1 WIN)
Casey Kirwan, 331
Garrett Lowe, 328 (1 WIN)
Graham A. Bowlin, 326 (1 WIN)
Daniel Faulkingham, 310 (1 WIN)
13. Dylan Duval, 290 (1 WIN)

Playoff re-seeding following Pocono Raceway on July 30th, 2024.

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Segment 3 Final Standings after Round 5 of 5 are as follows:

Steven Wilson, 183
Graham A. Bowlin, 168
Michael Cosey Jr, 146
Garrett Lowe, 144
Bobby Zalenski, 135
Tucker Minter, 135
Daniel Faulkingham, 130
Parker White, 128
Nick Ottinger, 122
Femi Olatunbosun, 119

eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Team Standings through Round 14 are as follows:

William Byron eSports (#25/#97), 709
M80 (#10/#80), 683
Joe Gibbs Racing (#18/#54), 669
Williams Esports (#51/#53), 635
Kanaan Esports (#11/#66), 629

The 10 drivers that will compete for the 2024 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series playoffs include Wilson, Bobby Zalenski (Joe Gibbs Racing), Vicente Salas (Kanaan Esports), Minter, Garrett Lowe (BS+COMPETITION), Bowlin, Daniel Faulkingham (Joe Gibbs Racing), Dylan Duval (Nitro Circus Sim Racing), White, and Ottinger. They’ve been re-seeded based on race wins and Segment victories.

Both Wilson and Salas scored Segment wins, adding five bonus points to their totals. Wilson, with three wins, leads the reset with 2020 points. Zalenski and Salas are tied for second, with 2010 points. All the winners only get five points, and sit tied for fourth. Both White and Ottinger, with no wins, get no bonuses entering the playoff field and will have to compete with just 2000 starting points. Casey Kirwan also won a segment, but with not making the playoffs, those points become unused.

Ray, Tinsley, and Keegan Leahy (23XI) all won races during the regular season, but because they didn’t finish inside the top 20 in the regular season standings, they will not compete for the title this season. They can still race back into the top 20 to stave off relegation over the next four races.

The entirety of the 40 top-rated eNASCAR driver field will be back in two weeks for the start of the 2024 eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series playoffs at Michigan International Raceway. Tune in on Tuesday, August 13th, at 7:30 p.m. ET for the Countdown to Green. Race coverage for the event begins at 8 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live and across iRacing social media channels.

For more information on the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series, visit www.enascar.com or www.iracing.com/enascar. For more information on iRacing and for special offers, visit www.iracing.com.