Alex Bowman will retire from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition following the 2027 season after signing a one-year contract extension, Hendrick Motorsports announced Thursday.
Bowman, an eight-time Cup Series winner, has competed full-time for Hendrick Motorsports since 2018 and currently drives the team’s No. 48 Chevrolet. The 33-year-old Tucson, Arizona, native missed four races earlier this season due to vertigo and sits 29th in points with three top fives and four top 10s in 17 starts this season.
RELATED: Alex Bowman driver page | Cup Series standings
His departure will come at the conclusion of his 12th full season of Cup Series competition, a venture highlighted by a four-win season in 2021.
“Alex has meant so much to our organization for a long time,” Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports, said in a team press release. “He’s overcome adversity, won big races and represented our team and partners with professionalism, personality and class. Alex is a tremendous talent in the race car and an even better person outside of it. We’re proud he’ll have the opportunity to finish his full-time career with us on his terms. He’s family.”
Bowman’s tenure marked the culmination of a successful rise from underfunded upstart teams to one of the sport’s premier organizations. He first joined Hendrick Motorsports in 2016, substituting for an injured Dale Earnhardt Jr. and sharing driving duties with Jeff Gordon. Bowman parlayed the part-time role into a full-time gig starting in 2018, driving the No. 88 car until seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson retired after 2020, when Bowman moved into the No. 48 Chevy.
Bowman won at least once each season from 2019 through 2022, earning a career-best points finish of sixth in 2020 before winning four races the next year.
“I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what’s next, and this feels like the right decision at the right time,” Bowman said. “The sport asks a lot of you, and I’ve learned it’s important to listen to your body and make the right choices for yourself. To say I’m incredibly grateful to Mr. Hendrick, our partners at Ally and Chevrolet, and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports would be an understatement. They believed in me and gave me the biggest opportunity of my life.
“My focus now is on making the most of my time on the race track and competing for wins. We still have a lot to accomplish, and I want to close my career on a high note for our team and our fans. To have the chance to do that with this organization and these people is really special.”
RELATED: Silly Season updates | Bowman career highlights
Injuries led to missed time behind the wheel over the last few years. Concussion-like symptoms sidelined Bowman from the car for five races in 2022. The next spring, Bowman was leading the Cup Series standings before a sprint car crash left him with a broken vertebra and forced him to miss three races in 2023. Bowman returned to Victory Lane in 2024, scoring his most recent win at the Chicago Street Course.
Bowman’s 2026 campaign has not gone to plan, ranking 29th in points after 21 races with three top fives and four top 10s. His 21.8 average finishing position is on track to be his poorest since 2015, when he competed for Tommy Baldwin Racing.