Interview
NASCAR Cup
Alex Bowman finds 'stamp of approval" in first NASCAR win
Alex Bowman had heard the critics.
Jim Utter
Edited: Oct 8, 2017, 5:22 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
When Bowman was named as Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s replacement next season in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, his ascension raised a lot of eyebrows.
Yes, he had done a solid job filling in for Earnhardt last season while Earnhardt suffered from a concussion, but the 24-year-old native of Tucson, Ariz., had never won a NASCAR race.
That fact alone was apparently enough to disqualify him in their eyes.
After Saturday night’s rain-delayed Drive for the Cure 300 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, that reason is no longer a valid one.
Bowman, making one of two starts in the Xfinity Series this season for Chip Ganassi Racing, took the lead with 31 of 200 laps remaining and held on to secure his first NASCAR national series victory.
“I’ve heard plenty of people say that I had never won any of the three NASCAR touring series races. I’ve had plenty of them slip away for various reasons, dominated plenty of them. We’ve led a bunch in a lot of them,” Bowman said.
“Definitely this win kind of gives a stamp of approval that I can do it and on top of that, to be out of the car for so long, it’s awesome to get back in the car and know that there were a few things I was a little rusty on but for the most part, I didn’t feel like a lost a bunch.”
Bowman has made only one other national series start this season, the Truck race at Atlanta, where he finished sixth driving for GMS Racing.
But Bowman has still seen plenty of track time this season. He has logged hundreds of miles this season driving Chevrolet’s wheel-force car at tests, which provides valuable data for simulation programs.
Still, Saturday night’s Xfinity race was his first competitive NASCAR event in a car and he was anxious to see who he would perform with a team that has won multiple races this season.
“It’s definitely very reassuring. Hopefully, it puts some of the people who talking to rest,” he said. “We’re going into 2018 to win a lot races in that No. 88 car.”
Bowman said he hasn’t won a race in anything since the 2012 season.
“To go through the ups and downs of my career, to align myself with Hendrick Motorsports, and have those days wondering if I would be able to drive a race car any more, it makes this so much more special,” he said.
“There’s plenty of race car drivers that could have sat in this car and won tonight but I’m just thankful to be that guy.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Jimmie Johnson: "It sucks starting the weekend behind like this"
Next article Stenhouse's crew chief: "We need to get him better race cars"
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jim Utter
Erik Jones agrees to multi-year contract extension with Legacy Motor Club
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Erik Jones agrees to multi-year contract extension with Legacy Motor Club
Goodyear's option tires at Richmond "were like Mario Kart with a star"
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Richmond II
Goodyear's option tires at Richmond "were like Mario Kart with a star"
NASCAR: Austin Dillon move was "really close to crossing the line"
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Richmond II
NASCAR: Austin Dillon move was "really close to crossing the line"
More from
Alex Bowman
Winners and losers from NASCAR Cup at Charlotte after dramatic finish
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
Winners and losers from NASCAR Cup at Charlotte after dramatic finish
Bubba Wallace, Alex Bowman uninjured after vicious crash in Charlotte NASCAR Cup race
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Charlotte II
Bubba Wallace, Alex Bowman uninjured after vicious crash in Charlotte NASCAR Cup race
Alex Bowman admits he didn't know who the leader was in 'embarrassing' Bristol crash
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Bristol II
Alex Bowman admits he didn't know who the leader was in 'embarrassing' Bristol crash
More from
Chip Ganassi Racing
Five-time IndyCar champion, first-time Indy NXT driver: Alex Palou tops IMS road course test
Indy NXT
Indy NXT 2 h
Five-time IndyCar champion, first-time Indy NXT driver: Alex Palou tops IMS road course test
Barnes: Why IndyCar’s updated licensing system fails its own integrity test
IndyCar
IndyCar
Barnes: Why IndyCar’s updated licensing system fails its own integrity test
Alex Palou to drive Indy NXT machinery in Chris Griffis Memorial Test at IMS
IndyCar
IndyCar
Alex Palou to drive Indy NXT machinery in Chris Griffis Memorial Test at IMS
Latest news
Colton Herta “maybe underestimated the difference” from IndyCar – F2 boss
FIA F2
F2 FIA F2 12 min
Colton Herta “maybe underestimated the difference” from IndyCar – F2 boss
WEC Barcelona: Genesis secures maiden series pole from Toyota
WEC
WEC WEC
Barcelona
1 h
WEC Barcelona: Genesis secures maiden series pole from Toyota
Five-time IndyCar champion, first-time Indy NXT driver: Alex Palou tops IMS road course test
Indy NXT
IndL Indy NXT 2 h
Five-time IndyCar champion, first-time Indy NXT driver: Alex Palou tops IMS road course test
Gabriel Bortoleto on Kimi Antonelli and Isack Hadjar's F1 success: 'Let's see where we are in 20 years'
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
3 h
Gabriel Bortoleto on Kimi Antonelli and Isack Hadjar's F1 success: 'Let's see where we are in 20 years'
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe