Alex Bowman gets First Career Win at Chicagoland

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JOLIET, IL – RIS – The young man who had finished second so many times held off Kyle Larson in the final laps to win his first career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup race on Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway.  He driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports was thrilled.

“It’s all I’ve wanted my entire life,” Bowman said.   I feel like this is a lot of validation for a lot of people that said we couldn’t do this. I’m so proud of everybody at Hendrick Motorsports and Axalta and the Hendrick Engine Shop.”

Bowman had to battle Kyle Larson in the final laps, in a finish reminiscent of Larson's 2018 runner-up disappointment on this track. Larson passed Bowman with eight laps remaining, before Bowman's No. 88 pulled back into the lead two laps later. Points leader Joey Logano placed third, followed by Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski.

Kevin Harvick dominated for most of the race and led a race-high 132 laps while also claiming Stage 2. The No. 4 got loose, however, late in the final stage, sending the driver into the wall, leading to a 14th-place finish. Harvick has yet to win a race this season.

“It looked like after we had that last green flag cycle things were looking pretty good. We ran down the 42 and I thought if we could get by him,” Logano said. Both the 42 and I were catching the 88, together, both of us were. I just couldn’t get to his inside or outside and get a run take it.”

Denny Hamlin won a chaotic Stage 1 under caution that featured at least six cars with rear flat tire issues. Kyle Busch hit the wall early in the stage, causing damage that would ultimately plague his car all race long as he finished outside the top 10 (22nd) for just the second time this season.

The race was delayed for over three hours following a thunderstorm that rolled in after just 11 laps were completed. Johnson was leading at that time but faded from the lead after racing resumed.  It was a strong day for Hendrick Motorsports as three of the drivers finished in the top 10.  It was only the second win for the Camaro, the first being at Dover by Chase Elliott.

The strength of Bowman’s car showed after the race was delayed by the storm. The 26-year-old Bowman had just six top-five finishes in 133 starts on NASCAR's top series before his banner day on the bumpy 1.5-mile oval.

Larson finished in the runner-up position after losing that epic battle last year with Kyle Busch, but he had company as the laps ran down.

Joey Logano, who entered with a one-point lead over Kyle Busch for the top spot in the series standings, finished third. Jimmie Johnson was fourth, and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top five.

It was a bad day for the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas. Logano, Keselowski and Ryan Blaney finished in the top six for Penske at Chicagoland, but it was a difficult day for the top performers at JGR.

Martin Truex Jr. never really threatened and had to settle for ninth after winning last weekend on the road course in California. Kyle Busch had several issues on his way to 22nd, once having his car fill with smoke from some unknown malfunction.  Erik Jones finished 7th in his Camry, but Denny Hamlin finished 15th.

nofficial Race Results for the 19th Annual Camping World 400 - June 30, 2019 - Chicagoland

Fin, St, Driver, Car, Laps, St1, St2, Tms Led, Laps Led, Playoff Pts, Pts, Status
1) 8, Alex Bowman, No. 88 Axalta Chevrolet, 267, 9, 4, 3, 88, 5, 49, Running
2) 14, Kyle Larson, No. 42 McDonald's Chevrolet, 267, , 3, 3, 7, , 43, Running
3) 19, Joey Logano, No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, 267, , , , , , 34, Running
4) 4, Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Chevrolet, 267, 4, 5, 1, 10, , 46, Running
5) 12, Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Miller Lite Ford, 267, 2, , , , , 41, Running
6) 10, Ryan Blaney, No. 12 BodyArmor Ford, 267, , , 1, 1, , 31, Running
7) 21, Erik Jones, No. 20 DeWalt Toyota, 267, , , 1, 1, , 30, Running
8) 11, William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet, 267, 8, 7, 2, 9, , 36, Running
9) 18, Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota, 267, 6, 6, , , , 38, Running
10) 1, Austin Dillon, No. 3 Dow Univar Solutions Chevrolet, 267, 5, , 2, 9, , 33, Running
11) 13, Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet, 267, , 2, , , , 35, Running
12) 25, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 17 Fastenal Ford, 267, , , 1, 2, , 25, Running
13) 5, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Global Poker Chevrolet, 267, 10, 8, , , , 28, Running
14) 2, Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Jimmy John's Ford, 267, 7, 1, 5, 132, 1, 37, Running
15) 9, Denny Hamlin, No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota, 267, 1, , 2, 5, 1, 32, Running
16) 15, Aric Almirola, No. 10 Smithfield Ford, 267, , 10, , , , 22, Running
17) 16, Ryan Newman, No. 6 Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs Ford, 267, , , 1, 1, , 20, Running
18) 27, Chris Buescher, No. 37 Maxwell House - USO Chevrolet, 266, , , , , , 19, Running
19) 3, Daniel Hemric #, No. 8 Liberty National Chevrolet, 266, , , , , , 18, Running
20) 7, Michael McDowell, No. 34 Love's Travel Stops Ford, 266, 3, , 1, 1, , 25, Running
21) 24, Paul Menard, No. 21 Menards/FVP Ford, 266, , , , , , 16, Running
22) 17, Kyle Busch, No. 18 Skittles Red White & Blue Toyota, 266, , 9, , , , 17, Running
23) 23, David Ragan, No. 38 Shriners Hospitals for Children Ford, 265, , , , , , 14, Running
24) 28, Daniel Suarez, No. 41 Ruckus Ford, 265, , , 1, 1, , 13, Running
25) 26, Bubba Wallace, No. 43 Victory Junction Chevrolet, 264, , , , , , 12, Running
26) 31, Ross Chastain(i), No. 15 Low T Center Chevrolet, 264, , , , , , 0, Running
27) 29, Matt DiBenedetto, No. 95 Procore Toyota, 264, , , , , , 10, Running
28) 22, Ryan Preece #, No. 47 Kroger Chevrolet, 264, , , , , , 9, Running
29) 38, Matt Tifft #, No. 36 Louis Kemp Crab Delights Ford, 263, , , , , , 8, Running
30) 30, Corey LaJoie, No. 32 Coin Lotto Ford, 263, , , , , , 7, Running
31) 33, Landon Cassill(i), No. 00 StarCom Fiber Chevrolet, 260, , , , , , 0, Running
32) 32, Bayley Currey(i), No. 52 Monarch Crypto Wallet Ford, 258, , , , , , 0, Running
33) 36, * Josh Bilicki(i), No. 53 INSURANCEKING.COM Chevrolet, 257, , , , , , 0, Running
34) 37, * Reed Sorenson, No. 27 VIPRacingExperience.com Chevrolet, 249, , , , , , 3, Running
35) 20, Ty Dillon, No. 13 GEICO Military Chevrolet, 239, , , , , , 2, Running
36) 34, BJ McLeod(i), No. 51 Jacob Companies Ford, 238, , , , , , 0, Running
37) 6, Clint Bowyer, No. 14 Toco Warranty Ford, 172, , , , , , 1, Accident
38) 35, Quin Houff, No. 77 Sleep6 Chevrolet, 100, , , , , , 1, Track Bar
(i) Ineligible for driver points in this series, (#) Rookie

Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 50 Mins, 49 Secs
Total Race Length: 267 Laps - 400.5 Miles
Average Speed: 140.677 MPH
1.5 - Mile Paved 
Margin of Victory: .546 Seconds

Stage 1 Top 10: 11, 2, 34, 48, 3, 19, 4, 24, 88, 1
Stage 2 Top 10: 4, 9, 42, 88, 48, 19, 24, 1, 18, 10

Race Comments: Alex Bowman won the 19th Annual Camping World 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, his first career win in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. Prior to the start of the race the following cars dropped to the rear of the field for the reasons indicated: No. 24 (engine change), No. 32 (transmission change) and No. 36 (inspection failure).

Caution Flags: 5 for 25 laps;
Laps: 12-16 (Lightning/Rain [Red Flag - 3:18:26]  [None]);
80-85 (No. 14 Spin in Turn 3 [21]);
104-108 (Fluid in Turn 4 [18]);
162-166 (Stage 2 Conclusion [12]);
173-176 (No. 4 Incident in Turn 2 [8]).

Lead Changes: 23 among 13 drivers;
A. Dillon 1-7;
J. Johnson 8-17;
A. Dillon 18-19;
K. Harvick 20-72;
D. Hamlin 73;
K. Larson 74;
D. Suarez 75;
E. Jones 76;
R. Newman 77;
M. McDowell 78;
D. Hamlin 79-82;
K. Harvick 83-98;
W. Byron 99-104;
K. Harvick 105;
W. Byron 106-108;
K. Harvick 109-166;
K. Larson 167-170;
A. Bowman 171-218;
R. Blaney 219;
R. Stenhouse Jr. 220-221;
K. Harvick 222-225;
A. Bowman 226-259;
K. Larson 260-261;
A. Bowman 262-267.