Alex Bowman shares $1B worth Rick Hendrick's honest reaction to his worrying back injury

In 2022 and 2023, Alex Bowman suffered two major injuries. First, the Hendrick Motorsports driver suffered from a concussion he endured during a crash in the Next Gen car in 2022. That ruled him out for five races. Then, the #48 driver suffered from a broken back in a Sprint car in 2023, which ruled him out for three races.

However, despite these major setbacks and the fact that Alex Bowman failed to win a race between March 2022 and July 2024, his boss, Rick Hendrick, kept his faith in him. This was something Bowman recently spoke about in a conversation with Kevin Harvick.

The former NASCAR driver asked Bowman on the Happy Hour podcast how Rick Hendrick, who has a reported net worth of $1 billion (as per Celebrity Net Worth), dealt with the injured driver.

"Extremely supportive. The one that stands out to me is, when I broke my back, knowing that I had to make that phone call and knowing that I did it like not in a Cup car, I did it doing an extra-curricular activity. You never want to make that phone call. He was extremely supportive immediately. He did absolutely everything he could to help in every circumstance. There was never a pressure to get back in the car or a timeline, or you need to do this, you need to be winning again by this. Just getting to work with Mr. H and Jeff Gordon and everybody, they definitely were really kind to me through that situation," Alex Bowman described [9:10 onwards].

During his conversation with Harvick, Alex Bowman also touched on the trajectory of his career and how he feels like an imposter at times. He put himself as someone who was 'always scratching' to get one-off opportunities in NASCAR, a driver who could 'do more with less.'

"To be at a team like Hendrick Motorsports, you gotta pinch yourself every now and then," Bowman mentioned [7:47].

He claimed he went from the smallest team in the Cup garage to the biggest. It's worth mentioning that Alex Bowman's Cup career began at BK Racing in 2014. But in 2016, he was signed by HMS, and from 2018 onwards, he became a full-time driver for the outfit.

Because of his upbringing of always working on his own cars and being 'scrappy' with his 'do-more-with-less' philosophy still programmed into him, Bowman finds it 'kind of weird' driving for HMS. He further explained:

"Because that is the polar opposite. Mr. Hendrick gives us absolutely everything we need to be successful. That's a little different for me. He gives us no reason we can't go and get the job done." [8:39 onwards]

Last season, Jeff Gordon took it upon himself to address the rumors surrounding Alex Bowman by declaring that HMS believes in him and the #48 team.

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Jeff Gordon emphasized HMS' confidence in Alex Bowman amid Spire rumors in 2024

Jeff Gordon visits pit row to talk with Alex Bowman before the 2023 YellaWood 500 - Source: Imagn

In 2024, rumors of Alex Bowman's seat being taken by Justin Haley began to take wind. At one point, the HMS driver himself addressed these rumors and emphasized that they had no substance in them, considering he signed a 3-year deal in 2023.

The rumors surrounding Alex Bowman's future at Hendrick were also addressed by Jeff Gordon in September last year. Gordon, HMS' Vice Chairman said that while he doesn't like to address rumors, they had 'a lot of confidence' in Bowman, his crew chief, and the whole #48 team.

"Nobody wants to see them go deeper into the playoffs or go to Phoenix and compete for a championship more than we do. We believe in those guys," Gordon emphasized [via Motorsports Wire].

He added that he understood how silly season works and things coming along when drivers aren't performing at a team like HMS where there's 'a high standard.' Gordon claimed he understands how rumors such as the one in question get out, but assured the organization remained excited about their future with Bowman.