Disastrous NASCAR playoff start leads to pit crew swap for Bowman
BRISTOL, Tenn. — Facing elimination from the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, Hendrick Motorsports swapped out members of Alex Bowman’s pit crew for the Bristol Night Race.
Bowman’s new crew members come from Carson Hocevar’s team, as follows:
- Front tire changer: Daniel Bach in, Donnie Tasser out
- Rear tire changer: Rod Cox in, Andrew Bridgeforth out
- Jackman: Cody French in, Allen Holman out
- Tire carrier: Jarius Morehead in, Brandon Grier out
Tasser, Bridgeforth, Holman and Grier will service Hocevar’s No. 77 car at Bristol.
Between the two teams, Hocevar fueler Zico Pasut and Bowman fueler Jacob Conley are the only pit crew members servicing the same driver as last week at Gateway.
Bowman’s disastrous start to the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs prompted the change. Right away at Darlington, Bowman went two laps down after his pit crew didn’t plug in the air gun. Then at Gateway, a slow stop set him back and forced crew chief Blake Harris into a dicey strategy.
Bowman ultimately finished 31st at Darlington and 26th at Gateway. He is now 35 points below the cutline separating the 12 drivers set to move on in the playoffs and the four drivers who will be eliminated after Bristol.
The rest of the team is also responsible for this.
While crew chief Blake Harris made good calls to help Bowman regain two laps at Darlington and get him into position for a win or top-10 finish at Gateway, the car has lacked speed off the hauler in both races. Worse yet, Bowman had a speeding penalty at Gateway on his final pit stop.
Crunch time has been a disaster with three finishes of 26th or worse – in stark contrast to a 10-race summer stretch with eight finishes of 11th or better.
Bowman needs to turn the summer sizzle into a hot race at Bristol. With 2,019 points, he is 58 points off of the four-season average to advance to the Round of 12. He is also 66 off of the 2024 total to advance.
The maximum points you can earn in a single race is 61.
Bowman needs to win. It isn’t feasible for him to rely on Austin Cindric (+35 to Bowman), Austin Dillon (+24) and Shane van Gisbergen (+20) having trouble.
Should Bowman be eliminated, the team will then need to perform and build momentum for 2026. If they struggle, Hendrick may need to overhaul the team.
Then comes 2026 – a contract year for Bowman but not for sponsor Ally. If Bowman doesn’t perform with all the right parts and pieces in place, Hendrick may move on from him.
DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.
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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