Alex Bowman to Miss Phoenix Cup Race due to Vertigo
#Alex Bowman#vertigo#Phoenix Raceway#Hendrick Motorsports#Anthony Alfredo#NASCAR Cup Series#medical clearance#injury
📌 Key Takeaways
Alex Bowman will miss the Phoenix NASCAR Cup Series race due to ongoing vertigo symptoms.
Anthony Alfredo will substitute for Bowman in the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports car.
Bowman has not been medically cleared to race despite evaluation and test laps.
This marks Bowman's third injury-related absence in five seasons, impacting his playoff standings.
📖 Full Retelling
Phoenix International Raceway (Avondale, Ariz.) — Alex Bowman will miss the NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway this weekend (Sunday, 12:30 p.m. ET on FS1) as he continues to suffer from vertigo following last week’s race at Circuit of the Americas. Anthony Alfredo, who does most of the Hendrick Motorsports simulator work and races full-time in the O’Reilly Series, will replace Bowman in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 car. Bowman spent two days of being medically evaluated and then drove laps today in a streetcar at the Ten Tenths Motor Club road course in Concord. He has not been cleared to return to racing. "Alex has worked very hard over the last several days," HMS President Jeff Andrews said in a statement. "We’re encouraged by the progress he’s making, but we have to prioritize his health above all else. "It’s obviously frustrating for him because he’s a competitor and wants to be in the race car, especially at his home track. We’ll continue to support Alex and look forward to his return as soon as he’s medically cleared." [NASCAR POWER RANKINGS: SVG, Ryan Blaney Making Moves] Missing the Phoenix race will be crushing for Bowman, an Arizona native in a contract year who is last among the full-time drivers in the standings, 45 points out of a current playoff spot. He likely will be at least 65 points back following Phoenix. But Bowman had no choice as he continued to battle vertigo following COTA, where he suddenly struggled during the final stage. The team, without a driver on standby, asked part-time driver Myatt Snider, who was working the pits helping gather information for FOX Sports, to finish the race for Bowman. This is the third time in the last five seasons that Bowman has had to sit out at least one race because of injury. He missed five races in 2022 because of a concussion and three races in 2023 because of a broken back suffered in a sprint-car race. If Bowman could start the race and have Alfredo replace him during the event, Bowman would g
Anthony Francis Alfredo (born March 31, 1999), nicknamed "Fast Pasta", is an American professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, driving the No. 4 Chevrolet Camaro SS for Alpha Prime Racing and the No.
Top national division auto racing division within NASCAR
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States.
The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division...
Phoenix Raceway is a 1.000 mi (1.609 km) dogleg oval track in Avondale, Arizona. The track has held a variety of events since its opening in 1964, including NASCAR, IndyCar, and CART races. It has a seating capacity of 42,000 as of 2019.
Alexander Michael Warren Bowman (born April 25, 1993) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Hendrick Motorsports and part-time in the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, driving t...
Hendrick Motorsports is an American professional auto racing organization that competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series. The team was founded in 1984 as All-Star Racing by Rick Hendrick. Hendrick Motorsports has won a NASCAR-record 320 Cup Series races and 15 Cup S...
- No Data Available - BROWSE BY SPORTS & TEAMS PLAYERS SHOWS PERSONALITIES TOPICS Built on NASCAR Cup Series NASCAR Cup Series Alex Bowman to Miss Phoenix Cup Race due to Vertigo Updated Mar. 5, 2026 2:09 p.m. ET share facebook x reddit link Bob Pockrass FOX Motorsports Insider Phoenix International Raceway (Avondale, Ariz.) — Alex Bowman will miss the NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway this weekend ( Sunday, 12:30 p.m. ET on FS1 ) as he continues to suffer from vertigo following last week’s race at Circuit of the Americas. Anthony Alfredo, who does most of the Hendrick Motorsports simulator work and races full-time in the O’Reilly Series, will replace Bowman in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 car. Bowman spent two days of being medically evaluated and then drove laps today in a streetcar at the Ten Tenths Motor Club road course in Concord. He has not been cleared to return to racing. "Alex has worked very hard over the last several days," HMS President Jeff Andrews said in a statement. "We’re encouraged by the progress he’s making, but we have to prioritize his health above all else. "It’s obviously frustrating for him because he’s a competitor and wants to be in the race car, especially at his home track. We’ll continue to support Alex and look forward to his return as soon as he’s medically cleared." Alex Bowman was forced to leave last week's race at COTA early due to vertigo. [NASCAR POWER RANKINGS: SVG, Ryan Blaney Making Moves ] Missing the Phoenix race will be crushing for Bowman, an Arizona native in a contract year who is last among the full-time drivers in the standings, 45 points out of a current playoff spot. He likely will be at least 65 points back following Phoenix. But Bowman had no choice as he continued to battle vertigo following COTA, where he suddenly struggled during the final stage. The team, without a driver on standby, asked part-time driver Myatt Snider, who was working the pits helping gather information for FOX Sports, to finish t...
