[autotag]Alex Bowman[/autotag] didn’t expect to be 96 points below the playoff cut-line entering the regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway at the beginning of the 2023 NASCAR season. In fact, it wasn’t even a thought as Bowman led the point standings after the sixth race of the season at Circuit of the Americas.
Unfortunately for the Hendrick Motorsports driver, an injury suffered in a sprint car racing accident following the 10th race of the season at Talladega Superspeedway derailed his year. Bowman missed three races but only had one top-10 finish over the next 12 events. Now, the No. 48 team enters Daytona in a must-win situation. Bowman talked about the scenario in an article from Hendrick Motorsports.
“Obviously, this situation is not ideal, but we have one option – win,” Bowman said. “I have mixed feelings because normally, I feel like I draft well with the No. 9 car and Chase Elliott, but this weekend, I have to beat him. We have a great team, a great pit crew, and as long as we can stay out of the big one, there is no reason we can’t go compete for a win this Saturday and grab the last playoff spot.”
Bowman has to beat Elliott but it is best to stick with what works as both Hendrick Motorsports drivers seek a spot in the 2023 NASCAR playoffs. If Bowman fails to hit the lottery in Daytona, it will be a disappointing end to a championship push that looked so promising at the start of the year.
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