He’s still chasing stardom, but Alex Bowman is already perfect fit in historic No. 48 car

The garages at Daytona International Speedway were a lonely place for Alex Bowman in the first half of last decade.

For years, he had toiled away in smaller racing circuits, trying to make a breakthrough in NASCAR and it finally arrived in 2014, when he made his NASCAR Cup Series debut at the 2014 Daytona 500.

Bowman’s reputation was caught somewhere between exciting prospect and no-name rookie. His days in the NASCAR Xfinity Series — then the NASCAR Nationwide Series — weren’t all too impressive. Only 20, he was considering giving up on racing to go to college, ready to get out before he flamed out. He needed a boost and Jimmie Johnson, the best driver in NASCAR, provided it.

“Jimmie was the first guy in the Cup garage in 2014 to come up to me and offer advice,” Bowman said. “’Man, you’re doing a really good job, doing way better than that car should be doing. Keep doing what you’re doing. It’ll be worth it and it’ll work out.’

“I really needed to hear something like that and that did a lot for me mentally.”

Two years later, they became teammates when Bowman left Tommy Baldwin Racing for Hendrick Motorsports and their passing relationship blossomed into a full-fledged friendship. Last year, Johnson decided to retire and pass on his car to the driver he once inspired to keep racing.

On Sunday, Bowman will make his third Cup Series start in the storied No. 48 car when he starts 13th in Homestead for the 2021 Dixie Vodka 400, which will welcome several thousand fans as part of a roughly 20-percent capacity crowd.

With only two Cup Series wins in his still-young career, Bowman is still chasing the level of stardom suited to Johnson’s No. 48, but the seven-time series champion has found a fitting successor to his legacy.

“Obviously, it’s an honor to be driving the 48 car,” Bowman said. “It helps that we have a good relationship.”

It also helps that Bowman has been in this sort of place before.

Bowman’s rookie season with BK Racing in 2014 was mostly a bust. He finished 35th on the series and only cracked the top 20 once, then he jumped to Baldwin Racing for a year without much improvement.

In 2015, he finished 33rd with a three top-20 finishes and none in the top 15, and then Baldwin dumped him. He was relegated to racing part time for Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s JR Motorsports on the 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series and only got a chance back on the highest stage when Earnhardt missed the second half of the 2016 season and Hendrick needed to find replacement drivers in Earnhardt’s No. 88. For the 2016 New Hampshire 301, Earnhardt and owner Rick Hendrick tapped Bowman.

The race was one of the best of his career, as he mostly ran in the top 10 before a flat tire caused him to finish 26th. He ran nine more races in the No. 88 in 2016 — splitting time with Jeff Gordon — and logged three top-10 finishes. Finally, his career was on track, and Earnhardt and Hendrick asked him to take over No. 88 full-time in 2018 when Earnhardt retired.

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The past three years were by far the three best of his career. He won his first two Cup Series races and finished sixth in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series, and then Johnson decided to retire. Bowman, 27, once again found himself replacing a legend.

“Taking over the 88 definitely probably prepared me for a lot of the questions and stuff I’ll get with the 48,” Bowman said. “To get that call from Mr. H is really special. ... The off-the-track stuff has definitely been different and a change, and I’ve really been enjoying that. As far as the on-track stuff, it’s the same pit crew, same guys, same crew chief. I’ve got to remember to find the 48 pit stall, but other than that everything else is the same.”

Bowman’s first drive in his new car was one of his best. He started the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series by winning the pole at the 2021 Daytona 500, although a crash about 15 minutes into the race caused him to finish 35th. A week later, he cracked the top 10 at the 2021 O’Reilly Auto Parts 253 back in Daytona Beach to put him back on track for this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

“It’s a place that I feel like really should suit our race car, suit my driving style,” Bowman said. “I’m pretty confident everywhere we go this year we’re going to have great race cars.”