Rick Hendrick's star driver, Alex Bowman, returned to the NASCAR grid after recovering from vertigo, and it took him just three races to get his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet to the podium.

Despite starting 20th at Talladega, Bowman not only pushed his way to the podium but also helped fellow Chevrolet driver Carson Hocevar to the win. The "Big One" on lap 115 thrust him towards the front half of the grid, and he maximized the opportunity.

Other than the Big One, one factor was common through the race. The lead pack ran in tandems of two, with most of the cars either pushing or being pushed. When asked what NASCAR can do to shake things up, Bowman said (via Frontstretch):

"I just think it takes a massive change with the race car. Like fundamentally, I don’t know if that’s downforce or horsepower or drag or tire. I have no idea. But I personally feel like the car is so draggy that you can have these big runs, and you pull out of line, and you just stop, right? Like, you see the third lane get up there and make hay for a minute, and then they just die. So maybe get drag off of them and knock speed out of them with horsepower."

NASCAR attempted to tackle the issue of fuel saving by changing up the stage lengths to a longer first stage, followed by two short stages to finish (98-45-45 instead of 60-60-68). The stage change was expected to prevent lifting and help with a strategic order change, but it was more of the same at Talladega.

Add to that the problems the Next Gen Car has with drag and running speed in clear air, and you have a clear buildup to chaos, as was seen on lap 115. Alex Bowman admitted that simply taking drag off wouldn't be feasible because then they would be going at 220 miles an hour.

Bowman on not crashing at Talladega

The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season hasn’t been the best for Bowman, as he missed four races after being diagnosed with vertigo. When he eventually returned to Bristol, he ended up crashing out through no fault of his own. 

Reflecting on his Talladega finish, Bowman said, "There’s a lot of relief to finish and to not crash. The bigger relief for me is not to crash at a place like this. I don't have any big hits left in me I (am) tired of crashing."

Asked about his mentality after returning from injury and if crashing is something he thinks about while driving, Bowman replied, "I don’t think you can be in the race car actively worried about crashing. It’s just something you know that it’s a high possibility when you come to a speedway."

However, on the performance front, Talladega was a successful weekend for Rick Hendrick and co. Corey Day won his first O'Reilly win on Saturday, and Bowman's podium sealed the impressive outing.

You can read more NASCAR news on the Daytona Racing Digest!

Written by

Debrup Chaudhuri

Edited by

Yask Kotak