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Alex Bowman’s Bristol Return Turns Chaotic As SVG Sparks Costly Pileup

Originally posted on RFKRacingDigest
By Debrup Chaudhuri | Last updated Apr 12, 2026 8:09 PM ET

Alex Bowman just can’t seem to find any luck. Returning to Bristol after missing the last four races, Bowman ended up with a DNF beside his name through no fault of his own.

Bowman in the #48 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports was running out wide of John Hunter Nemechek on lap 160 when Shane van Gisbergen spun.

Nemechek, who was trying to avoid contact with SVG, ended up shoving Bowman into the barrier, which led to all three cars ending up damaged, crawling back to the pits. While SVG made a return after repairs, it was Bowman whose car was beyond repair to take further part in the race.

After his race ended early, Bowman spoke to Fox Sports and said, “I was fine. Just a frustrating day. Really struggled with our Ally 48 Chevy.” Speaking about the build-up, he said, “Thought we were okay in practice and then obviously qualified bad and then just struggled with the handling today.”

A frustrating return to the No. 48 machine for Alex Bowman at Bristol. pic.twitter.com/PLobKBddVp
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 12, 2026

Speaking about the pile-up and the damage to the car, Bowman said, “Bummer. Hate that we didn’t get a chance to work on it, make it better, and finish the race.”

On his luck, he said, “Kind of outside of our control when you run that bad, stuff can happen, and it happened to us.”

“We’ll go try again next week,” said Bowman, who needs to put in quite the performance in the remaining 18 races before the Chase.

Given he missed four races due to vertigo, and because he currently sits 36th, there is an expectation that NASCAR could grant him a medical waiver to remain eligible for the playoffs should he secure a victory in the remaining 18 regular-season races.

Bowman’s Return at Bristol After Uncertain Future Scare

Bowman, who was recovering from vertigo, a disorder that he felt may end his career, was cleared on April 9 and was allowed to take part in the race in Bristol. Currently 36th in the standings, Bowman would have thought that Bristol would have been a good place to come back and start picking up points in an effort to make the cut for the Chase.

Bowman had predicted that Bristol, which is a high-banked, physically demanding short track, was “likely the worst track to come back at.” Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t the banking or the physical demand but the “uncontrollable” that saw his race come to an abrupt end.

Speaking after the DNF, Bowman said, “We move on to Kansas. Another should be a good track for us. This one should have been too, but it’s the way it works out sometimes.”

Do you think Bowman can still make it to the Chase?