Bowman gets needed boost at Chicagoland, eyes upset run in In-Season Challenge

JOLIET, Ill. -- Alex Bowman knows he didn't put any extra effort into Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway. His preparation was the same as it is every week, he said, as was the prep of the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team. But for the first time since May, that work paid off with a top-five finish in Sunday's eero 400, a much-needed boost for a driver and team that have heard all the noise in the midst of a season in which Bowman and Co. sit 29th in the points standings with just seven races remaining before The Chase. "Everybody here sees all the bull-[expletive], just like I do," Bowman said. "They all care a lot and work really hard, and how this car runs means a lot to a lot of people. So having those people have a good week -- a good start to their week at least and not be starting the week mad about the weekend -- is good. Hopefully, we can keep it up." MORE: In-Season Challenge hub | Cup standings The last time NASCAR raced at Chicagoland in 2019, Bowman was celebrating in Victory Lane. Sunday's performance may not have been a literal win, but it checked several boxes, including a top-15 qualifying effort, stage points earned and a second straight top-10 finish. "We unloaded happier with the car than we have lately and felt like sim was better than it has been for us lately, and just every little part and piece was a little bit better," Bowman said. "And nothing went wrong throughout the course of the race, even though we fired off way too tight, not where we needed to be. But yeah, I feel like we put together a solid day and keep digging at it." He also continued his underdog run in the second edition of the In-Season Challenge, which pays $1 million to the tournament winner following the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Bowman advanced as the bottommost No. 32 seed into the quarterfinal Round of 8 after upsets against No. 1 Tyler Reddick at Sonoma Raceway and No. 16 seed Austin Cindric on Sunday at Chicagoland. He'll face No. 25 Zane Smith next as the series shifts to EchoPark Speedway on Sunday (7 p.m. ET, TNT Sports, truTV, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). "Had a whole lot of personality with me versus Cindric on that one," Bowman joked. "But yeah, it definitely pays a lot of money, so you've gotta pay attention to it. But at the same time -- I feel like it's my answer to every single question that I get asked -- but we're just super focused on trying to turn things around and get pointed back in the right direction on this team. That means a lot more than the in-season deal for us." [caption id="attachment_518283" align="aligncenter" width="1300"]Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images[/caption] To finally have positive momentum following the No. 48 team is a welcome change -- not just for those directly working on that car -- but also for the whole of Hendrick Motorsports. Bowman missed four races this spring after a bout with vertigo and has just seven top-20 finishes in 15 starts in what is a contract year for him. Chad Knaus, Hendrick Motorsports' vice president of competition and a seven-time Cup Series champion crew chief, has seen the work put into turning the No. 48 team's results around, making Sunday's finish more rewarding. "That team has been rebuilding and growing and getting stronger and tougher all year long," Kanus told NASCAR.com. "And it's good to see Alex comfortable enough in the car that he can get out there and race and put the car in situations that are compromising (and) be able to pull it off. So I'm really proud of those guys. They've needed a little bit of momentum, and the last couple weeks they've been getting some, so it's nice to see." RELATED: Bowman: 'I don't feel like I'm racing for my job' At the core of the No. 48 team's success is Bowman and crew chief Blake Harris. The duo has been paired together since 2023, and they've collected one win, claiming the 2024 Chicago Street Race victory. Their chemistry remains strong, bolstered through adversity rather than weakened by it, Harris told NASCAR.com. "I think what people don't see behind the scenes is we're always building this team," Harris said. "And I'm always good with this guy (Bowman). Like, guys talk about radio chat or whatever, but like I hang out with this guy in my free time, right? So he and I, our team, we'll go into next week with the same prep as if something bad happened to be finished 36th this week, right? It doesn't change for us. That's kind of what the Cup Series is, though, right? The day you think you've got it figured out, you come back the next week and get your teeth kicked in, and you just can't afford to ever lay down. "Everybody's been working hard, been working no different than if we'd have been running top five every week. Just, it feels like once the metric flips and you get some good finishes and get those later qualifying spots, pit stalls come with that. The whole day just becomes a little bit easier. That's kind of why I say momentum is not a fake thing in the Cup Series. It just helps your odds of pushing forward when you have things go right."