Alex Bowman Accuses Richard Childress Racing of Race Manipulation at Richmond

Hendrick Motorsports star Alex Bowman made some serious allegations against RCR over Austin Dillon's Richmond victory.

Alex Bowman Accuses Richard Childress Racing of Race Manipulation at Richmond

Alex Bowman (via Motorsport.com) and Austin Dillon (via Reuters)

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HMS star Alex Bowman finished in second place at the Richmond Raceway in Saturday’s Cook Out 400. Bowman was in contention for race victory against RCR’s Austin Dillon. However, the No. 48 driver failed to take the lead. Now, he has accused Richard Childress Racing of trying to manipulate the race.

In the final few laps of the race, Alex Bowman was not far behind race leader Austin Dillon. However, the HMS driver found himself stuck right behind Dillon’s teammate Jesse Love. Love was four laps down on the race leaders and became an unnecessary obstacle in Bowman’s path to Austin Dillon. The No. 48 driver did not hold back his feelings over what was going on.

Alex Bowman lashed out on the team radio over Jesse Love, using some rather profane language. The HMS driver accused RCR of manipulating the race as he lost crucial time behind the backmarker, allowing Austin Dillon to stretch his lead upfront.

His teammate is *** blocking me now. This is race manipulation.

Alex Bowman said on team radio

After the race, the Hendrick Motorsports driver did not change his mind. The No. 48 driver asserted that he was not happy even though such things do happen in NASCAR. He pointed out that he ended up using his tires too much while being stuck in traffic, this made it much harder for him by the end of the race. Moreover, Bowman insisted that he had a far quicker car than his RCR rival this time around, but things just did not work out in his favor.

Needed some favors. I sure complained about it on the radio, but that’s just part of what we do. Vented a little bit but had a really good Ally 48 that last run and just burned the tires too much in lap traffic. Just didn’t get any breaks and it made me work the rears harder than I needed to. Need to be a little bit better there to get to him. I certainly think we had the better car but unfortunately didn’t get there.

Alex Bowman told NBC Sports

Alex Bowman under pressure to secure a Playoff spot

After Richmond, there is just one race left in the regular Cup season. The pressure on Alex Bowman’s shoulders to secure a Playoff spot cannot be higher. The HMS star has surprisingly failed to win a single race this season, something that’s a bit of a shock considering Hendrick Motorsports is one of the best teams in NASCAR.

Alex Bowman
Alex Bowman (Via IMAGO)

In the final regular season race at Daytona, Bowman needs to win or at least defeat Tyler Reddick in points to guarantee a spot in the business end of the tournament. Though, if there is no new winner in Daytona, both Bowman and Reddick will make it to the Playoffs.

The HMS star admitted that the stress was only increasing, as Daytona had essentially become a must-win race for survival. Alex Bowman expects a new winner in the final race and hopes to be the one who makes his way to Victory Lane. Moreover, he hoped to spoil the party for Tyler Reddick as well.

Certainly, it’s really stressful on a lot of fronts. I mean, I think with the way that race normally goes, it’s about a must-win at that point because I think you’re most likely to have a new winner. Just need to go execute and try to win the race. That’s all we can do. Looks like we maybe can get to [Reddick]. Looks like he had a bad day. So possible there. Looks like a big gap, so… just got to go to work.

Alex Bowman explained

Certainly, time is running out for Alex Bowman. Daytona has become the do or die situation for the No. 48 driver. If he fails to make it to the Playoffs, it would be a big embarrassment for Hendrick Motorsports. Though, Bowman has managed to step up on the right occasions in the past and fans would hope that he does the same next weekend.

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