| Alex Bowman | |
| Birth Name: | Alexander Michael Warren Bowman |
| Birth Date: | 25 April 1993 |
| Birth Place: | Tucson, Arizona, U.S. |
| Weight: | 178 lbs |
| Achievements: | 2008 USAC Speed2 National Midget Champion 2008 USAC Speed2 California Dirt Midget Champion 2018, 2021, 2023 Daytona 500 Pole Winner NASCAR record for most front row starts and most consecutive front row starts in the Daytona 500 (6 times, 2018–2023) |
| Awards: | 2009 USAC National Midget Championship Rookie of the Year 2011 K&N Pro Series East Rookie of the Year 2012 ARCA Racing Series Rookie of the Year |
| Total Cup Races: | 317 |
| Years In Cup: | 10 |
| Cup Car Team: | No. 48 (Hendrick Motorsports) |
| Prev Cup Pos: | 9th |
| Previous Year: | 2024 |
| Best Cup Pos: | 6th (2020) |
| First Cup Race: | 2014 Daytona 500 (Daytona) |
| First Cup Win: | 2019 Camping World 400 (Chicagoland) |
| Last Cup Win: | 2024 Grant Park 165 (Chicago Street) |
| Cup Wins: | 8 |
| Cup Top Tens: | 92 |
| Cup Poles: | 5 |
| Total Busch Races: | 56 |
| Years In Busch: | 9 |
| Busch Car Team: | No. 17 (Hendrick Motorsports) |
| Prev Busch Pos: | 87th |
| Prev Busch Year: | 2023 |
| Best Busch Pos: | 11th (2013) |
| First Busch Race: | 2012 Dollar General 300 (Chicagoland) |
| Last Busch Race: | 2024 SciAps 200 (Loudon) |
| First Busch Win: | 2017 Drive for the Cure 300 (Charlotte) |
| Busch Wins: | 1 |
| Busch Top Tens: | 18 |
| Busch Poles: | 3 |
| Total Truck Races: | 4 |
| Years In Truck: | 3 |
| Prev Truck Pos: | 115th |
| Prev Truck Year: | 2023 |
| Best Truck Pos: | 79th (2017) |
| First Truck Race: | 2015 Careers for Veterans 200 (Michigan) |
| Last Truck Race: | 2022 DoorDash 250 (Sonoma) |
| Truck Wins: | 0 |
| Truck Top Tens: | 1 |
| Truck Poles: | 0 |
| Total Arca Races: | 21 |
| Years In Arca: | 2 |
| Best Arca Pos: | 4th (2012) |
| First Arca Race: | 2011 Herr's Live Life With Flavor! 200 (Madison) |
| Last Arca Race: | 2012 Kansas Lottery 98.9 (Kansas) |
| First Arca Win: | 2011 Herr's Live Life With Flavor! 200 (Madison) |
| Last Arca Win: | 2012 Kansas Lottery 98.9 (Kansas) |
| Arca Wins: | 6 |
| Arca Top Tens: | 15 |
| Arca Poles: | 6 |
| Total Arca East Races: | 12 |
| Years In Arca East: | 1 |
| Best Arca East Pos: | 6th (2011) |
| First Arca East Race: | 2011 Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet 150 (Greenville-Pickens) |
| Last Arca East Race: | 2011 Dover 150 (Dover) |
| Arca East Wins: | 0 |
| Arca East Top Tens: | 7 |
| Arca East Poles: | 0 |
| Total Arca West Races: | 3 |
| Years In Arca West: | 2 |
| Best Arca West Pos: | 42nd (2011) |
| First Arca West Race: | 2011 Toyota/NAPA Auto Parts 150 (Colorado) |
| Last Arca West Race: | 2018 Carneros 200 (Sonoma) |
| Arca West Wins: | 0 |
| Arca West Top Tens: | 2 |
| Arca West Poles: | 0 |
| Updated: | November 5, 2023 |
Alexander Michael Warren Bowman (born April 25, 1993) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports and part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 17 Chevrolet Camaro for the same team. He owns a Dirt Midget and Sprint car racing team Alex Bowman Racing. He is known for a record six consecutive front-row starts in the Daytona 500, from 2018 to 2023, winning the pole in 2018, 2021, and 2023.
He is known by many nicknames, the most predominant being Bowman the Showman. Denny Hamlin called him "just a hack" after a late-race collision at Martinsville in 2021 took Hamlin out of contention for the win. Following a 2022 race at Las Vegas, Kyle Busch said Bowman was "all luck, no skill" after Bowman won the race by taking 2 tires on a pit stop during a late-race caution.[1]
A native of Tucson, Arizona, Bowman started his racing career on short tracks in Arizona and California in 2000 at the age of seven,[2] driving quarter midget cars in United States Auto Club (USAC) competition. By 2006, he had won nine national championships and had 165 feature wins.[3]
In 2008, he won the USAC National Focus Midget championship with 11 wins, as well as the California Dirt Focus Midget championship. In 2009, he was named USAC National Midget Rookie of the Year. In February 2010, Bowman was injured in an accident during a USAC race, suffering a fractured clavicle and rib.[4] Bowman continues to field a midget in select races.
In 2010, at the age of 18, he moved to full-bodied stock car racing, making two Rev-Oil Pro Cup starts and a late model start. Bowman moved to the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East with X Team Racing for 2011.[5] Bowman finished sixth in series points, winning Rookie of the Year honors.[6] In 2018, Bowman made his return to the west series at Sonoma Raceway, driving the No. 24 for Bill McAnally Racing.
Bowman competed in two ARCA Racing Series events during 2011 for Venturini Motorsports, at Madison International Speedway and Kansas Speedway, winning both events.[7]
He moved full-time to ARCA for 2012 for Cunningham Motorsports as a development driver for Penske Racing,[2] winning races at Salem Speedway, Winchester Speedway, Iowa Speedway, and Kansas Speedway over the course of the year.[8] He also won the pole for the inaugural ARCA Mobile 200 at Mobile International Speedway.
Bowman returned to the Cup Series at Loudon in the New Hampshire 301, driving the No. 88 for Hendrick Motorsports as an interim driver for Dale Earnhardt Jr., who would miss the remainder of the 2016 season because of concussion issues.[31] Despite running in the top ten, including as high as eighth, Bowman blew a tire and hit the wall in turn one on lap 272, relegating him to a 26th-place finish.[32]
Bowman and Jeff Gordon would alternate the No. 88 car for the balance of the 2016 season. Bowman won his first career pole at Phoenix.[33] In that race, Bowman led the most laps with 197 and tried to make what would have been the winning pass on Matt Kenseth with six laps to go. While passing Kenseth, Bowman got tapped from behind by Kyle Busch, spinning Kenseth out; Bowman recovered to finish sixth.[34]
In December 2016, Rick Hendrick announced that Bowman would run the No. 88 in place of Earnhardt Jr. for the 2017 Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona; while Earnhardt Jr. was also eligible for the event, he elected to allow Bowman drive the car out of appreciation for substituting in 2016.[35] Bowman finished third after losing out in a side-by-side battle for second with Kyle Busch.[36] When Earnhardt Jr. announced his retirement in the spring, he expressed support for Bowman to replace him in the No. 88 for the 2018 season.[37] On July 20, Hendrick Motorsports formally named Bowman as the driver of the No. 88 car in 2018.[38]
Bowman opened up the 2018 season on February 11 by winning the pole for the 2018 Daytona 500.[39] Despite being winless, he made his Playoff debut by staying consistent with two top-fives and nine top-10s. After the Charlotte Roval race, Bowman advanced to the Round of 12. Bowman was eliminated from the Round of 12 after the fall Kansas race and finished 16th in points.
The 2019 season saw improvement in Bowman's finishes, including three consecutive second-place finishes at Talladega, Dover, and Kansas. At Kansas, Bowman dominated the later portion of the race but was passed by Brad Keselowski with eight laps to go and could not retake the lead. Bowman also made the starting grid of the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race by winning the Fan Vote.
At the 2019 Camping World 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, Bowman again dominated the final stage of the race but was passed by Kyle Larson with 8 to go. However, unlike the race at Kansas, Bowman was able to pass Larson again with 6 to go and won his first Cup Series race.[40] With the win, Bowman has finished in every possible position in a NASCAR Cup event.[41] Bowman opened the first round of the playoffs with a solid 6th-place finish at Las Vegas, dismal 23rd-place at Richmond, and runner-up to Hendrick teammate Chase Elliott at the Charlotte Roval, which secured his advancement into the Round of 12. At Talladega, Bowman was leading the pack in the closing laps of Stage 2 when he was punted from behind by Joey Logano, triggering The Big One.[42] Bowman was eliminated in the Round of 12 after the Kansas race.[43]
On March 1, 2020, Bowman got his second career NASCAR Cup Series win in the Auto Club 400 after leading 110 laps and winning stage 1. After a late pit-stop by second-placed Ryan Blaney, Bowman beat Kyle Busch by a margin of nine seconds.[43] On October 6, Hendrick Motorsports announced that Bowman and crew chief Greg Ives would switch to the No. 48 car to replace the retiring Jimmie Johnson for the 2021 season, during which he inherited Ally Financial's sponsorship; the No. 88 would be taken over by Kyle Larson and renumbered to No. 5.[44] [45] Bowman finished 6th in the 2020 standings.
Bowman started the 2021 season by winning the pole at the 2021 Daytona 500.[46] After an inconsistent start to the year, Bowman won at Richmond after holding off Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano in a late race restart with 12 laps to go, his third career victory and the first time that the No. 48 returned to Victory Lane since Johnson won the 2017 AAA 400 Drive for Autism.[47] Three weeks later, Bowman would achieve his second win of the season at the 2021 Drydene 400. On June 18, Bowman signed a contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports through 2023.[48] He won again at the 2021 Pocono Organics CBD 325 when teammate Larson, the leader, blew a tire going into the last corner on the last lap. During the playoffs, Bowman made it to the Round of 12, but struggled with poor finishes at Las Vegas and Talladega. Following the Charlotte Roval race, he was eliminated from the Round of 8.[49] Despite his elimination, Bowman scored his sixth career win at Martinsville.[50] He finished the season 14th in the points standings.
Bowman's 2022 season began by qualifying 2nd for the 2022 Daytona 500, but he was involved in a lap 63 crash in which he slammed into the flipping car of Harrison Burton. He was able to continue, but lost four laps, ultimately finishing 24th.[51] The following week, at the WISE Power 400 in Fontana, Bowman was running in the top 10 when he hit the outside wall late in the race, finishing 25th. However, he won the 2022 Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas, his seventh career victory, after battling with teammate Kyle Larson over the last couple laps.[52] [53] In the race at Circuit of the Americas, Bowman was in the lead heading into turn 19 on the final lap. However, Ross Chastain bumped A. J. Allmendinger into Bowman, causing him to go wide and finish second behind Chastain. A concussion sustained from his crash at Texas forced him to miss the races at Talladega, Charlotte Roval, Las Vegas, Homestead, and Martinsville, with Noah Gragson filling in the No. 48 for him.[54] [55] [56] Due to his injury, Bowman was eliminated in the Round of 12.[57] Bowman was cleared to return for the title decider race on October 28.[58] He finished the season 16th in the points standings.[59]
Prior to the Daytona 500, Bowman signed a three-year extension to remain with HMS through 2026 with his sponsor Ally Financial signing a five-year extension with HMS as well.[60] Bowman began the 2023 season with a fifth place finish at the 2023 Daytona 500. On March 15, the No. 48 was served an L2 penalty after unapproved hood louvers were found installed on the car during pre-race inspection at Phoenix; as a result, the team was docked 100 driver and owner points and 10 playoff points. In addition, crew chief Blake Harris was suspended for four races and fined 100,000.[61] On March 29, the National Motorsports Appeals Panel amended the penalty, upholding the fine and Harris' suspension but restoring the owner, driver, and playoff points.[62] On April 6, the No. 48 was served an L1 penalty after alterations to the car's greenhouse were discovered during post-race inspection following the Richmond race; as a result, the team was docked 60 driver and owner points and five playoff points. In addition, interim crew chief Greg Ives was suspended for two races and fined 75,000.[63] On April 25, Bowman suffered a back injury from an accident during a sprint car race at West Burlington, Iowa. Josh Berry, who substituted for Chase Elliott earlier in the season, was announced as the relief driver of the No. 48 while Bowman recovered. Bowman returned to Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Coca-Cola 600 and finished 12th. Also, Bowman announced that he will not race sprint cars to focus on NASCAR and said that he will have Jake Swanson to race on his sprint car team from now on.[64] Due to the races he missed, combined with some poor finishes, Bowman failed to make the playoffs.[65]
Bowman started the 2024 season by finishing second to teammate William Byron at the 2024 Daytona 500.[66] He broke an 80-race drought by winning at the Chicago street race on wet tires after a late-race pass on Joey Hand and held off a charge by Tyler Reddick who was on the faster slicks.[67] Bowman entered the 2024 NASCAR playoffs as the 12th seed.[68] On September 20, Bowman scored his 5th career Cup Series pole for the playoff race at Bristol the next evening. This is his first pole since the 2016 Fall Phoenix race that is not for a Daytona 500. Through the Round of 16, Bowman earned 120 points, the most of any driver and advanced to the Round of 12. At the Kansas fall race on September 29, Bowman continued his hot start to the playoffs by winning Stage 2, his first stage win of the season, and earning the fourth-most points in the race.[69] Bowman would finish 18th at the Charlotte Roval and would advance to the Round of 8 but was later disqualified after his car failed post-race inspection due to not meeting minimum weight. As a result, Joey Logano, who was initially eliminated at the conclusion of the Round of 12, would advance to the Round of 8 while Bowman was eliminated.[70] Bowman finished the season ninth in the final point standings.
(key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)| Year | Team | Manufacturer | Start | Finish | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | BK Racing | Toyota | 29 | align=center style="background:#CFCFFF;" | 23 | |
| 2015 | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | align=center colspan=2 style="background:#FFCFCF;" | DNQ | ||
| 2018 | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | align=center style="background:#FFFFBF;" | 1 | align=center style="background:#DFFFDF;" | 17 |
| 2019 | 2 | align=center style="background:#DFFFDF;" | 11 | |||
| 2020 | 2 | align=center style="background:#CFCFFF;" | 24 | |||
| 2021 | align=center style="background:#FFFFBF;" | 1 | align=center style="background:#EFCFFF;" | 35 | ||
| 2022 | 2 | align=center style="background:#CFCFFF;" | 24 | |||
| 2023 | align=center style="background:#FFFFBF;" | 1 | align=center style="background:#DFDFDF;" | 5 | ||
| 2024 | 7 | align=center style="background:#DFDFDF;" | 2 |
| NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | Pts | Ref | ||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | JR Motorsports | 00 | Chevy | DAY | ATL | MAR | KAN | CLT | DOV | TEX | GTW | IOW | KEN | ELD | POC | MCH 11 | BRI | MSP | CHI | NHA | LVS | TAL | MAR | TEX | PHO | HOM | 95th | 01 | [91] | |||||||||||||||
| 2017 | GMS Racing | 24 | Chevy | DAY | ATL 6 | MAR | KAN | CLT | DOV | TEX | GTW | IOW | KEN | ELD | POC | MCH | BRI | MSP | CHI | NHA | LVS | TAL | MAR | TEX | PHO | HOM | 79th | 01 | [92] | |||||||||||||||
| 2022 | Spire Motorsports | 7 | Chevy | DAY | LVS | ATL | COA 25 | MAR | BRD | DAR | KAN | TEX | CLT | GTW | SON 29 | KNX | NSH | MOH | POC | IRP | RCH | KAN | BRI | TAL | HOM | PHO | 101st | 01 | [93] | |||||||||||||||
| 2023 | DAY | LVS | ATL | COA DNQ | TEX | BRD | MAR | KAN | DAR | NWS | CLT | GTW | NSH | MOH | POC | RCH | IRP | MLW | KAN | BRI | TAL | HOM | PHO | 115th | 01 | [94] | ||||||||||||||||||
Season still in progress
Ineligible for series points
| NASCAR K&N Pro Series East results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Pts | Ref | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | X Team Racing | 16 | Toyota | GRE 3 | SBO 8 | RCH 5 | BGS 12 | LGY 6 | GRE 4 | DOV 23 | 6th | 1642 | [95] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 76 | IOW 27 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gaunt Brothers Racing | 75 | Toyota | JFC 24 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| X Team Racing | 59 | Toyota | NHA 6 | COL 2 | NHA 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NASCAR K&N Pro Series West results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Pts | Ref | |||
| 2011 | X Team Racing | 59 | Toyota | PHO | AAS | MMP | IOW | LVS | SON | IRW | EVG | PIR | CNS 9 | MRP | SPO | AAS | 42nd | 318 | [96] | |||
| Venturini Motorsports | 25 | Toyota | PHO 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Bill McAnally Racing | 24 | Chevy | KCR | TUS | TUS | OSS | CNS | SON 24 | DCS | IOW | EVG | GTW | LVS | MER | AAS | KCR | 61st | 20 | [97] | ||
(key) (
Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)| ARCA Racing Series results | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | No. | Make | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | Pts | Ref | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2011 | Venturini Motorsports | 55 | Toyota | DAY | TAL | SLM | TOL | NJE | CHI | POC | MCH | WIN | BLN | IOW | IRP | POC | ISF | MAD 1 | DSF | SLM | KAN 1 | TOL | 55th | 445 | [98] | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Cunningham Motorsports | 22 | Dodge | DAY 30 | MOB 3 | SLM 1* | TAL 32 | TOL 9 | ELK 11 | POC 3 | MCH 2 | WIN 1 | NJE 13 | IOW 1* | CHI 8 | IRP 22 | POC 3 | BLN 13 | ISF 2 | MAD 2 | SLM 5 | DSF C | KAN 1* | 4th | 4725 | [99] | ||||||||||||||||||