In Sunday night’s production of the Banknorth 250, Ben Rowe was cast in the role of the forgotten man.

It’s not a highly sought-after part. The spotlight largely shines in the direction of the other characters – in this case Nextel Cup stars Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch, and several of the local standouts at Oxford Plains Speedway. Rowe, who competes in the traveling PASS series, was rarely mentioned in the same breath.

But to his credit, Rowe never complained. He played the role of the forgotten man with all the skill worthy of an Oscar nomination.

Or, a two-time Banknorth 250 champion.

“I kind of liked it that way,” Rowe said Monday night, 24 hours after his second consecutive victory in Maine’s premier stock car race. “Most of the media focused on Kenseth and Busch. We just went about our thing without having any pressure on us at all.”

Continuing his role as the forgotten man, Rowe even resumed his day job Monday morning working for his father’s construction business. Rowe did admit that he was a couple of hours late for work.

His part-time job Sunday night rewarded him with a winner’s purse of $29,700.

The entries of reigning Nextel Cup champ Kenseth and young standout Busch in the Banknorth 250 raised awareness of the already popular race across a wide area of the northeast. While final figures are not yet available, track owner Bill Ryan estimated the crowd at 13,500, perhaps the largest crowd ever for a 250 race.

“Things went great. Better than our expectations,” said OPS spokesman Mark Turcotte.

The massive crowd overwhelmed the parking lots, the pits, the grandstands and the concession areas. Turcotte reported that the track sold virtually all of its remaining merchandise Sunday.

“The only thing we have left is a box of shirts,” said Turcotte.

The drivers noticed the crowd, too.

“It was a treat to race in front of a packed grandstand,” said Rowe. “During the drivers’ introductions, when you looked over to the crowd, you couldn’t see a free seat anywhere.”

Rowe led 36 laps just after the halfway point of the race before reclaiming the lead 11 laps from the finish and sprinting to the checkered flag. He credited the pit strategy of changing all four tires as being the key factor for his win. The fresh rubber allowed him to have more grip to pass on the outside groove.

Kenseth and Rowe hooked up for one memorable battle late in the race, when they fought side-by-side for several laps.

“I caught him, but I didn’t know at the time that we were racing for second and third,” said Rowe. “He moved out half a groove so I used one of my father’s tricks. I went wide on (turns) one and two and then dipped down on the backstretch.”

The pair made contact and kept up the side-by-side fight before Kenseth gave Rowe the ultimate sign of respect. Realizing that the local racer had the faster car, Kenseth motion Rowe to go ahead of him.

Alan Wilson dominated the later stages and led 63 consecutive laps before running into trouble 11 laps from the finish, paving the way for Rowe’s second consecutive title.

Ricky Rolfe hung on for second and Kenseth, who started last in the 41-car field, showed his tremendous talent to finish third.

Busch spun out late in the race and finished 13th, three laps behind the leaders.

“They enjoyed themselves,” said Turcotte. “Bill Ryan talked with Matt afterwards about the possibility of coming back next year. He left the door open.”

That’s good news for local fans and drivers like Rowe, who acknowledged that the big name drivers attract fans who might not otherwise attend the Banknorth 250.

No matter how many different NASCAR drivers, if any, enter next year, Rowe will never again be cast as the forgotten one.

Ben, welcome to the spotlight.