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Again Under Pressure, Alex Bowman Confident About Chances Of Chicago Street Race Repeat

Jared Turner Written by Sports EditorJared Turner
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Alex Bowman

When Alex Bowman arrived in the Windy City for last year’s Chicago Street Race, the pressure was mounting for him to score a playoff-clinching win that he ultimately did capture before the weekend ended.

This weekend, Bowman finds himself in a remarkably similar predicament.

And the NASCAR Cup Series driver for Hendrick Motorsports is optimistic about reaching the same outcome.

Alex Bowman’s 2024 Chicago Street Race Win Came At The Perfect Time

As has been true with each of the NASCAR Cup Series’ first two visits to the Chicago Street Course, rain was a major factor in last year’s on-track proceedings. Thankfully for Alex Bowman, the wet weather did not slow him down.

Once the weather began to ease up following a lengthy red flag for precipitation, Bowman rounded into the form he had lacked all year. He led the final eight laps of the rain-shortened event in his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, taking the checkered flag nearly three seconds ahead of runner-up Tyler Reddick.

The result marked Bowman’s first win of the season. It also guaranteed him a ticket to the playoffs. Perhaps most important of all, though, it brought Bowman some welcome relief from a steady stream of questions he’d been peppered with for several months about his future at Hendrick.

“I think there was a lot of rumors started by people that maybe don’t really know what they’re talking about in a sense, but at the same time, I think it was really important to make the playoffs and to finish the year strong, right?” Bowman said on Saturday in Chicago. “Like, we were able to have a really strong playoff run.

“So, yeah, I think that race was just important in general for the race team to end the season strong and, obviously, start this year strong as well. … I think it was just important for the team, and it was definitely a good day for us.”

Rain Or Shine, Alex Bowman Is Upbeat About Potential For Another Chicago Street Race Win

Now fast-forward to this year and Sunday’s Chicago Street Race. Just like last season, Alex Bowman needs a victory to lock up a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. He is currently 39 points above the cutline and just 16 ahead of current playoff bubble driver Bubba Wallace.

While Bowman doesn’t necessarily have to win again at the Chicago Street Course to reach the playoffs, a victory on Sunday would all but seal the deal. It doesn’t hurt Bowman that he’s riding somewhat high on the heels of a third-place finish this past weekend in Atlanta. That followed an 11th-place finish at Pocono and a fourth-place run on the road course in Mexico City.

Prior to the last three weeks, Bowman had registered three consecutive finishes of 29th or worse.

Bowman qualified 11th in Chicago but must start at the rear for going to a backup car following an accident in practice.

“As far as confidence coming into this race, I feel like we’re plenty capable,” Bowman said. “We’re typically pretty good at the road courses and have a lot of confidence coming into these places. The weather looks similar (to 2024), so that adds a layer of confidence. I thought we were pretty good in the rain. We were really good as it started to kind of dry out and get patchy.

“So, yeah, I think we’re definitely confident.”

Even though Bowman excelled on a wet track last year, he prefers not to race in the wet this time. Doing so is a real possibility, though.

“Hopefully, it’s dry,” he said. “I feel like the fans here deserve to just get a normal race. I think we could put on a great show in the dry — probably a little better than we do in the rain.”

Jared Turner Written by Sports EditorJared Turner
Jared Turner is a motorsports writer who has covered NASCAR for 20 years. He has interviewed over 20 NASCAR Hall of Famers and around 100 drivers, crew chiefs, and team owners, both past and present. He has also covered the sport for FOX Sports (where he was a two-time recipient of the FOX “X” Award for “Xtraordinary” job performance), NASCAR.com, Sporting News, NASCAR Pole Position Magazine, the SPEED network, and plenty of other online and print-only publications throughout his career. Notably, Jared has penned dozens of articles for NASCAR souvenir programs, including several featured prominently in Daytona 500 keepsakes. A Virginia Press Association award winner and former member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), Jared has racked up accolades both for his writing and his academic work. He studied both Communication and Psychology at Virginia Tech, where he was permanently enshrined in Phi Beta Kappa — the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society. Jared excels at feature writing and opinion writing, much of which stems from his dedication to all levels of racing.
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