'He's a fighter': Alex Bowman making a case for his long-term future at Hendrick Motorsports

Over the first two months of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, everything that could go wrong in a contract year for Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman did go wrong. 

Bowman finished 40th, 23rd and 36th in the first three races of the year before missing the next four with vertigo and finishing 37th in his return to the track at Bristol. 

But after an 18th-place finish at Kansas, Bowman has strung together consecutive third-place efforts at Talladega and Texas to reinvigorate his No. 48 team and make a case for why he should be retained by HMS in 2027 and beyond. 

"Alex is a great guy," said Jeff Gordon, a Hall of Fame driver who now serves as Hendrick's vice chairman. "He’s been a great asset to Hendrick. He’s had some misfortunes that were out of his control, but we think the world of Alex. He’s like family to us."

Bowman's rough start to 2026 seemed to be just another example of fate stacking the deck against him. He missed five races in 2022 due to a concussion, three in 2023 due to a back injury and initially made the penultimate round of the NASCAR playoffs in 2024 before a disqualification knocked him out of title contention. 

When he's healthy, Bowman's talent is undeniable. He made the penultimate round of the playoffs in 2020, won four races in 2021 and got back to the postseason in 2025. 

But he's been viewed in the NASCAR zeitgeist at the stereotypical "fourth Hendrick driver" — a fate shared by the likes of Ken Schrader, Jerry Nadeau and Casey Mears over the years, all of whom were solid drivers who never quite lived up to the championship standards expected at HMS. 

That doesn't make any of the above bad drivers. But it does place a fair amount of pressure on them, especially Bowman, given that he's in a contract year. 

To his credit, Bowman was the second-best Hendrick driver at Texas on Sunday. While Chase Elliott won the race, Kyle Larson crashed on Lap 160 and William Byron had to rally to an eighth-place finish after spinning.

Bowman, meanwhile, had a steady presence in the top five throughout the final stage and even gave Elliott the winning push with four laps to go. 

There is a steep hill for Bowman and the No. 48 team to climb if they want to make the Chase in 15 races time. But Bowman's performance has ticked up enough to make that a possibility, even with four races worth of points having been left on the table.

What the future holds for Alex Bowman

Perhaps the most important factor in Bowman's long term future, even more so than his current mini hot streak, is that Gordon and the rest of HMS seem to be empathetic towards the adversity Bowman has endured in his career.

"I mean, I can’t put myself — I’ve never had to overcome the adversity he’s had to overcome," Gordon said. "Before he ever got to NASCAR, you know, he’s gone through some tough things mentally and physically from driving for a team that had to close shop to getting a ride at Hendrick Motorsports and Dale Jr. praising him and then getting injured.

"I think it goes to show you the resiliency and strength that he has. I almost think he thrives sometimes when he’s down. He’s a fighter. I think these last few weeks — not just the last two — when he’s gotten back in the car has shown what he’s made of as a human being."

Quotes provided by NASCAR Media.