"I crashed the 12": Alex Bowman confesses to his "sh***y" move that ruined defending Cup Series champion's race 

Alex Bowman has admitted to his fault in Ryan Blaney's Stage 2 chaos. The defending Cup Series champion was inching closer to a top-5 finish and was less than a lap away from materializing it. However, the Hendrick Motorsports rival made a "shi**y push," sending the former into the outside wall.

The YellaWood 500 ended on a disappointing note for Team Penske. Despite locking spots in the top 10, Roger Penske's boys couldn't complete their 31st race weekend. However, Blaney saw calamity striking his #12 Ford much earlier than his teammates, courtesy of HMS Bowman.

The #48 Chevy driver was behind the #12 Ford and pushed him to make room for passing. However, Alex Bowman miscalculated his draft and Blaney paid the price, along with Ross Chastain. The wreck sent the defending champion's car screeching into the wall and collecting the Trackhosue Racing driver's #1 Chevy into the mess. It left Blaney enraged and he slammed the HMS driver for "wrecking the f**k out of him."

Bowman admitted to his "wrong decisions" during a post-race interview with Bob Pockarass. The HMS driver said.

"Overall, kind of disappointed with myself. Made the wrong move a lot and crashed the 12 it was a shi**y push. Obviously, trying to push him to help our lane for the stage and just put him in the wrong spot. He (Blaney) though I did that, he thought I made the wrong decisions, I just didn't do a very good job today," Bowman said.

"Yeah, it was a bad push. I lifted as I rolled up to him, but certainly not enough...I think if I would've gotten to him 100 feet later, he would've been okay. Turning enough at that point obviously, it hurt them (#12 team)," he added (0:43).

Alex Bowman is well above the playoff cutline and will enter the Round of 12 elimination race at Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course with a 26-point cushion.

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How Ryan Blaney's teammates' Tallageda weekend took a disappointing turn after Alex Bowman took one out

While Ryan Blaney's race was marred by a DNF after 124 laps, Austin Cindric and Joey Logano fell victim to the same much later in the battle. After Blaney's bid to propel his #12 Ford for a promising finish was over, the remaining Penske drivers gunned for the best finish they could.

However, with just five laps until the checkered flag dropped, Cindric led the pack. With Logano running in the top 5, calamity stemmed from Brad Keselowski's #6 Ford. The RFK Racing driver spun the race leader, which cascaded into a 28-car stack-up, the biggest in NASCAR's modern history.

It spiraled eight playoff drivers, including Austin Cindric and Joey Logano, who could've each bagged a top-5 finish. The disappointing turnaround at Talladega has pushed both drivers below the playoff cutline. Logano is placed ninth, with a 13-point deficit, while Cindric is shy of 29 points in P11.

Despite Alex Bowman's wreck, Ryan Blaney is the only Team Penske driver thus far who is safely above the playoff elimination line with a 25-point surplus.