It hasn’t always been an easy year for Alex Bowman, but he’s resilient and resourceful. (Photo: Blake Ulino | The Podium Finish)
DARLINGTON, S.C. – If there’s a driver who’s ready for a fresh start, Alex Bowman is licking his chops ahead of Sunday night’s Cook Out Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET on USA).
It’s been a bit of a whirlwind for the eighth year NASCAR Cup Series racer particularly in the past 10 races.
With finishes of 36th at Nashville, 12th at Road America, 32nd at Atlanta, 35th at Loudon, 11th at Pocono, 32nd at Indianapolis, ninth at Michigan, 20th at Richmond and 14th at Watkins Glen and Daytona, the Tucson, Arizona native knows there’s no time like the present with the Playoffs.
Before qualifying 16th for Sunday night’s race, Bowman assessed his postseason odds, especially with his summer struggles.
“It’s been a rough summer, right?” Bowman poised. “I would love to say that and maybe that is the case. So, I don’t know, I guess we will find out the next 10 weeks.”
Much has been made of the current iteration of the Next Gen car and its ability to withstand impacts. It’s something that’s not lost with Bowman, especially with last year’s Playoff opener that put his No. 48 Ally Chevrolet team behind the curveball.
“The body is forgiving, but the suspension is super unforgiving, and then it catches on fire,” he observed. “So, trying to avoid that because that is what got us the last Darlington race.. it decided to catch on fire on the right front. Hopefully we can avoid that.
“But yeah, just knowing that if you hit the wall a little bit you have more room for error than you did with the old car for sure. Darlington is a place that you have to attack. You can’t just layover and try to survive. If you do that, then I feel like you kind of have a little bit of a lack in focus and don’t end up running well and it’s easier to make mistakes. We have to go run well and there is no way around it. You just have to go execute.”
It’s been some time since Bowman had a strong showing with a best result of sixth in his past five starts. Otherwise, Bowman tallied results of 18th, 17th, 26th and 29th during this stretch.
Despite the tough stretch, Bowman cherishes his latest Playoff entry. Consider how he’s made the Playoffs since 2018, or the past five years, all with Hendrick Motorsports.
Beyond pursuing his first Cup championship, the 29-year-old racer has added motivation, namely with the man atop his team’s pit box.
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Bowman looks to channel his best Jimmie Johnson approach with the Playoffs starting at Darlington. (Photo: Dylan Nadwodny | The Podium Finish)
I am super happy to make the Playoffs again and I think it shows the strength of our organization,” he remarked. “We have a lot of really smart people working on our cars and giving me the best equipment each weekend to go out there and compete for wins.
“Greg (Ives) and myself have made the Playoffs every season we have been together, and I am looking forward to getting another shot to compete for a championship.”
While the paint scheme, driver and pit crew may be different from the No. 48’s glory years with Jimmie Johnson, Bowman hopes to take a page from the future NASCAR Hall of Fame racer’s Playoffs approach.
If Johnson could maximize the most out of the 10 race postseason schedule, Bowman, albeit in a higher stakes, elimination type format, knows he and his crew are ready to answer the bell.
“I think we are super motivated because its Greg’s last 10 races with me and we want to end on a high note,” he noted. “We know the summer doesn’t matter anymore, our troubles, and it’s a good reset for us going into the Playoffs. Everybody is all in and I think we can definitely make some noise.”
Although Bowman’s time with Ives may be winding down in the next 10 weeks, regardless of the results, he’s looking at the Playoffs like Zack Morris and his dream band’s tune.
“We want to end him being my crew chief on a high note,” Bowman said. “We are going to be friends forever, but yeah, we want to go perform well.”
