Alex Bowman has heard the same question numerous times since the summer of 2016.
“Why’d they pick you?”
Instead of more proven drivers such as Matt Kenseth, why was Bowman chosen to fill in for the injured Dale Earnhardt Jr. five years ago? Why, when Earnhardt decided to retire the next year, did Hendrick Motorsports team owner Rick Hendrick opt to put Bowman in Earnhardt’s No. 88 Chevrolet?
Lastly, why did Bowman get the nod to take over the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet vacated by seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson?
Bowman has an answer for every person, but he’s the type who’d rather show you than tell you.
The 28-year-old Tucson, Ariz., native has been called “Bowman the Showman” — despite the fact he doesn’t consider himself to be a flashy, in-your-face person. Never mind Bowman’s penchant for speaking his mind, or his history of arguing with his haters on Twitter.
If you really want to know why Bowman was Hendrick’s man from the get-go, watch Bowman’s work behind the wheel.
Watch him win the pole for the Daytona 500 — something that’s becoming an annual tradition – in February. Watch him slide his purple-and-aqua No. 48 car through the turns at Atlanta Motor Speedway, like he did on his way to a third-place finish in late March.
Or, just watch Bowman handle adversity.
He’s no stranger to fighting an uphill battle. Bowman won two poles in 2013, his first NASCAR Xfinity Series season, driving the No. 99 Toyota for the storied RAB Racing team — storied in the sense that the only two poles the team ever won were with Bowman.
He was let go from the team before the season ended.
Bowman latched on to BK Racing, an underfunded NASCAR Cup Series outfit with just enough money to spend most of an afternoon on track in 2014. Earnhardt saw Bowman’s potential, even as Earnhardt was running up front and Bowman was toward the tail-end of the field or in the garage.
He gave Bowman’s career a short-term boost at the end of 2014. Bowman made two Xfinity Series starts for Earnhardt’s JR Motorsports operation, where he finished a nondescript 12th and 17th. Earnhardt liked Bowman’s potential, though, even after a rough go with Tommy Baldwin Racing that ended when Bowman refreshed his Twitter feed on a January morning in 2016 and learned he was fired.
Five years later, things are going much better. Bowman has more ammunition for his Twitter detractors.
More importantly, Bowman has three victories in NASCAR Cup Series competition, he’s qualified for the playoffs three years in a row and, armed with one of racing’s most storied teams supporting his efforts, his confidence is at an all-time high.
Starting off the year with another Daytona 500 pole — Bowman’s fourth straight front-row start in the race — didn’t hurt.
“I think that means a lot to (Hendrick),” Bowman said. “He wants to win everything. Like, every category, he wants to be top of the list, everything. It means a lot to (crew chief) Greg (Ives), because he wants to prove that he can build the fastest race car. And, it’s a lot of pride for the guys in our body shop, for the guys in our engine shop, to prove that they’re putting the best product on the race track that they possibly can.
“I’m so appreciative and blessed with this opportunity. I think for me, it’s really hard to sit here and be like, yeah, I did it, and I did this and that. … It’s much more about Hendrick Motorsports and the No. 48 team, Greg Ives, the engine shop, the chassis shop, body shop, Chevrolet, everybody at Ally. It’s more about the people that make it happen.”
The Daytona pole was a much-needed shot in the arm after an offseason wrought with sadness.
William “Rowdy” Harrell, a Hendrick pit crew member, lost his life last November while enjoying his honeymoon with his wife in Florida. The former University of Alabama football player had a reputation as one of Hendrick’s best crewmen, but he was also a friend to many in the organization.
Ives spoke about how the loss impacted the No. 48 group.
“It’s been a tough deal. I don’t build a team to wrench on cars,” he said. “I build a team to be a family. I build a team to have heart. I think a lot of heart goes into what we do every week. Why? Because we do it 39 weeks out of the year, and then we have an offseason that we do it again.”
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