Alex Bowman and Ally Racing one step closer to reaching a major $700,000 donation milestone

Winning the Grant Park 165 race in Chicago, Alex Bowman ended his 80-race winless streak in the NASCAR Cup Series. The win at the 'Windy City' has also brought Bowman and Ally Racing one step closer to reaching a major milestone.

Bowman and Ally Racing began their partnership in 2021 when the former took over the #48 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. Since then, the Arizona-based racer and Ally Racing have been donating $1,000 each to shelters managed by the Best Friends Animal Society, every weekend.

However, a race win resulted in both donating $5,000 each. With four race wins in 2021, the duo donated over $100,000 through the year.

Now, after competing in over two more seasons, both Bowman and Ally Racing have donated a total of around $650,000. With the boost from the win last weekend at Chicago, they are now close to reaching a major milestone of $700,000 by the end of 2024.

Here's a look at the X post by a senior journalist covering NASCAR for Savage Ventures, captioned:

".@Alex-Bowman and @allyracing donated more than $100,000 to Best Friends-affiliated animal shelters in 2021, their first season together. Last weekend's win at Chicago pushed them much closer to another milestone."

Apart from the top spot, Bowman was also able to confirm a spot in the 2024 NASCAR Playoffs this season at the Chicago Street Course.

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A brief look at the post-race clash between Alex Bowman and Bubba Wallace and its consequence

After winning the NASCAR Cup Series Grant Park 165, Alex Bowman was celebrating the victory on the cooldown lap. However, during the run to the victory lane, Bubba Wallace hit the #48 driver on purpose to showcase his anger over the spin in the early stage of the race.

The incident took Bowman by surprise. During the post-race interview with NBC Sports' Nate Ryan, Alex Bowman explained the situation:

"I'd be mad, too. I ruined his day. ... I just messed up. I've been embarrassed about it since it happened. I tried to call him during the rain delay and I shot him a text."

However, NASCAR officials saw the incident in a different light. They imposed a hefty fine of $50,000 on Wallace for violating sections 4.4 B & D of the code of conduct and showcasing unsportsmanlike behavior.

Despite the intentional collision, the Grant Park 165 race winner supported the 23XI Racing driver.

"He barely hit me, everything was fine and it was plenty deserved," Bowman said in defense of Wallace.

As of now, Alex Bowman is standing in 11th position in the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series driver's championship with a total of 553 points, while Wallace is trailing the Arizona-based driver at 15th place with 476 points.