In reflecting on his pathway to the present, Bowman noted there were some laughs and nervous moments along the way, but he feels that his journey has molded him into the driver he is today — one who has a shot to advance into the semi-final round of the playoffs on Sunday afternoon.
“It’s been really interesting, for sure. To start in 2016, to get a phone call from Kenny Francis to come drive the simulator because every other driver was in Daytona and I got fired on Twitter, so I wasn’t there (laughs), that was unusual,” Bowman recalled. “I drove the simulator for them quite a bit that year. And then, ended up filling in for Dale (Earnhardt Jr.) when he was hurt — kind of splitting that car with Jeff Gordon. I went back to the simulator in 2017 and then went full time in 2018; it was definitely a whirlwind. Everything happens for a reason and to have 2016 go the way that it did and to end up driving for Hendrick Motorsports because of it is pretty amazing to me. I definitely never would have thought that any of that would have happened.
“Since 2018, I’ve just been focused on trying to win races and perform the best that I can and represent our partners the best that I can. But those couple of years were definitely a whirlwind and very life-changing,” he added with a smile. “I think to look back at it all now is pretty crazy, for sure.”
Bowman also hopes his “buckle-down” journey to success will inspire other young, aspiring drivers that their individual dreams of making it to NASCAR are possible, as well.
“That’s the biggest motorsports problem right now, right? That it’s so hard to make it without a bunch of money behind you,” Bowman pointed out. “Obviously, my family did absolutely everything they could and sacrificed a lot to try to get me opportunities. In the end, it ended up being enough, but it didn’t look like it was going to be enough for quite a while. Hopefully, my story provides some hope to people.
“I think the moral of the story is to never give up. There were times in 2015 and really 2016 where I was like ‘man, I need to go to college, get a degree and find something to do’ because it’s just not working. I was close, but I never gave up … and to end up here is really cool, for sure.”
And as for his future? Bowman noted “there’s only one goal” going into the upcoming season.
“I’m here to win races,” he affirmed. “I’m not here to hang out, make friends, hang out in the bus lot and do all that. I’m here to win and that’s really all there is to it.
“Whatever it takes to get that done, I’m willing to do and I’m really excited for the future.”
Bowman will look to advance into the round of eight in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs during Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The event is scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. green flag, with live coverage on NBC, the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.