Alex Bowman believes his team is on the right track as he prepares for Sunday’s Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway.
Bowman comes into the weekend off a solid top-10 finish in last week’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. It was the fourth time this season Bowman has finishes inside the first ten and moved the Hendrick Motorsports driver to 14thin the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series point standings.
“We’ve had some ups and downs,” Bowman said when asked to asses his season to date. “We have been quite a bit off of how we expect and want to be running. Last week was a hard fought ninth-place finish but missed out on a lot of stage points. It’s better than a bad finish, but still frustrating.
“We have a lot of smart people trying to get all four of our cars better. But, it’s not secret we are off of where we want to be. It’s been frustrating, but we’re not terrible in the points right now. It’s a dream come true to just be driving for Hendrick Motorsports. I can’t complain too much.”
Bowman inherited the No. 88 ride at Hendrick and replaced the retired Dale Earnhardt Jr. The change brought with it a great deal of scrutiny as well as attention as Bowman took over the car driven by the sport’s perennial “Most Popular Driver.”
However, Bowman says the adjustment has gone well so far in the opening first half of the regular season.
“Yeah, I think honestly there is not a lot of pressure in the fact that it’s Dale’s old car, it’s the No. 88 car,” Bowman said. “The pressure for me comes from the fact that it’s a Hendrick Motorsports car. Hendrick Motorsports is known for winning races and winning championships and that is what I’m expected to do. I think most of my pressure comes from myself and the fact that I just want to win races and prove that I can do it.”
But what about the rabid “Junior Nation” fan base embracing the new driver of the 88 car?
“You know I think some have and some haven’t,” Bowman said. “Everybody is different. I’m super thankful for the Junior Nation fans that stuck around with the No. 88 car. I think if we go win some races a lot more of them will cheer, so that is kind of what I’m focused on. I’m not too worried about it either way, just thankful for those that have stuck around and hopefully make new fans every week.”
And the best way for Bowman to grow his fan base is through performance and success, which he hopes will continue this weekend at Pocono.
“We are continuing to improve,” he said about trying to find the perfect feel in his racecar. “I don’t think I’m going to have one that I like until we win, but we are getting closer.”
Motor Racing Network – “The Voice of NASCAR” will have live coverage of Sunday’s Pocono 400, beginning at 1 p.m. (ET) – with live streaming at MRN.com.
