The NASCAR Cup Series field has narrowed to eight drivers following the Charlotte ROVAL race. While top championship contenders have dominated the playoffs, there have been some surprising performances, including Alex Bowman from Rick Hendrick Motorsports.
Bowman steadily advanced through the first two playoff rounds, but after successfully making it into the top 8, his #48 car was disqualified post-race for failing the weight inspection. Despite expectations that Rick Hendrick might appeal the disqualification, the team chose not to, surprising many, including NASCAR veteran Dale Earnhardt Jr.
The ROVAL race was largely dominated by Hendrick Motorsports, with Kyle Larson winning, William Byron finishing third, and Chase Elliott taking fifth. Bowman, who placed 18th, had secured enough points to make the final eight. Hendrick Motorsports issued a statement saying they would not appeal, explaining, “We simply did not give ourselves enough margin to meet the post-race requirement… Although unintentional, the infraction was avoidable.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. speculated on his podcast, *The Dale Jr. Download*, that Bowman’s car might have lost weight after jumping the curb during the race, with parts possibly falling off. He had expected Hendrick to appeal, thinking they could argue that the lost parts caused the weight reduction.
However, Earnhardt noted that the experienced Hendrick crew would have quickly identified if this had been the case. He concluded that there was likely no significant weight loss from missing parts, suggesting the car was simply below the required tolerance.
Even Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin and Penske’s Joey Logano were puzzled by how such a large weight discrepancy occurred.
As a result of Bowman’s disqualification, Joey Logano has now advanced to the top 8.
