Thursday, February 27, 2020

Alex Bowman is 20/1 to win 2020 Auto Club 400 at Fontana

Alex Bowman had one the fastest cars on late runs last week at Las Vegas.
What Alex Bowman expects going to California:
“Fontana is neat track. There are a lot of different groves that you can move around a lot. Obviously, tire fall off is really big. I think it’s a place where you have to go pretty gripped up with a lot of downforce in the car and not super trimmed-out. So, I think it will fit our race car pretty well. It should be a really good race for us.”

CINCINNATI IS BACK IN 2020: In September 2019, Hendrick Motorsports announced a 10-year agreement with leading machine tool manufacturer Cincinnati Inc. As the new Official Metal Fabrication and Additive Equipment Provider of Hendrick Motorsports, the Ohio-based company will serve as the primary sponsor of the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE this weekend at Auto Club Speedway and at Kentucky Speedway later this season. Click here to see the No. 88 paint scheme for this weekend’s race.

CALIFORNIA STATS: Alex Bowman will make his fifth start at Fontana this weekend. The 26-year-old driver recorded his best finish of 13th at the 2-mile track in 2018 after rolling off 28th. He has completed 99.8% of the total laps during those four events. The Hendrick Motorsports driver has one start at Fontana in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2013, where he qualified sixth and finished 12th in the spring event.

TRACK STATS: In 2019, Bowman made 13 starts on tracks measuring 2 miles in length or greater. He qualified on the outside pole position three times last year on tracks of this length. Bowman brought home a runner-up finish at the Charlotte ROVAL and the spring Talladega event last season and captured four top-10 finishes.

LAS VEGAS REWIND: Prior to a late-race caution with six laps to go at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Bowman and the No. 88 team battled inside the top 10 for the majority of the 267-lap event. With less than 20 laps left in the race, Bowman’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE came to life and was moving up through the field. The Tucson, Arizona native entered the top three with 17 laps to go and eight laps later made the pass for second. During the caution on lap 261, the No. 88 team made the decision to come to pit road for four tires and fuel, putting the team 14th on the restart with two laps to go. Bowman ultimately finished the event 13th and earned valuable stage points for two top-10 finishes in Stages 1 and 2. Bowman’s average running position throughout the 400.5-mile event was 8.3.

CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’: Crew chief Greg Ives will call the shots for the sixth time for the No. 88 team at Fontana this weekend. The Michigan native led the No. 88 team to a sixth-place finish at the track in 2015. Ives’ drivers have completed 99.9% of the total laps during those five events. He has two starts as a crew chief in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, with a best finish of third coming in 2013 with driver Regan Smith. From 2006-12, Ives was a race engineer for the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team. During that time, he was part of four wins, two pole awards and nine top-five finishes at ACS.

IVES ON SIRIUS: Starting this week, Ives will join Sirius XM Speedway on channel 90 with Dave Moody every Monday at 5:00 p.m. ET to talk about the previous race and the upcoming event for the No. 88 team. Time is subject to change.

 

2020 Season

  • 14th in standings
  • 2 starts
  • 0 wins
  • 0 pole positions
  • 0 top-five finishes
  • 0 top-10 finishes
  • 3 laps led 
 
 

Career

  • 155 starts
  • 1 win
  • 2 pole positions
  • 10 top-five finishes
  • 26 top-10 finishes
  • 477 laps led
 
 

Track Career 

  • 4 starts
  • 0 wins
  • 0 pole position
  • 0 top-five finishes
  • 0 top-10 finishes
  • 1 lap led
 

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