Alex Bowman slips further in NASCAR Cup points after hard Michigan crash
BROOKLYN, Mich. — Alex Bowman is now just 13 points above the provisional NASCAR Cup Series playoff cutline after a hard crash in Michigan.
After starting 16th and dropping to 32nd with an ill-handling car in the 45-lap first stage, Bowman’s crew chief Blake Harris made adjustments to his car under the stage caution.
On lap 67 of 200, Bowman was slowly making progress. Then, he had nowhere to go Cole Custer, Daniel Suarez and Austin Cindric made contact in turn two. Bowman crashed head-on into the outside wall, ending his day.
“That hurt a lot. That was probably top of the board in terms of hits I’ve taken and I’ve taken some big hits,” Bowman said.
Bowman has been plagued by hard crashes and misfortune since taking over the No. 48 car in 2021.
In 2022, he sustained a concussion during a crash in a NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. The crash sidelined him for the five of the final six races of the season.
Early in 2023, while running inside the top-5 in Cup points, Bowman crashed in a sprint car race and broke his back. The crash caused him to miss multiple races and miss the playoffs, derailing what was shaping up to be one of the best seasons of his career.
Now in a similar slump, with seven finishes outside of the top-25 in the last nine races, Bowman has dropped from third in points, 75 points above the cutline, to 13th in points, just 13 points above. He crashed the last three weeks — Michigan, Nashville, Charlotte — and at Texas. Mechanical issues plagued him at Martinsville, Darlington and Bristol.
Bowman’s last win was at the Chicago Street Race last year. Luckily, that track is one of three road courses coming up in the next five races, starting with Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City next Sunday.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com