"There is no favoritism": NASCAR insider defends HMS after fan questions car quality for Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman

Bozi Tatarevic, a former mechanic and NASCAR journalist, took to his social media to respond to a fan's complaints against Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman's team, Hendrick Motorsports, not providing the two drivers with the fastest possible cars. Tatarevic defended the HMS operation, stating that the cars are all built equally for all the drivers in the team's stable, emphasizing the fact that the car manufacturing process leans towards no specific racer.

The fan's complaints seem rooted in the fact that Kyle Larson and William Byron, two of Hendrick Motorsports' drivers, currently occupy the top two spots in the drivers' standings after having scored wins already this past season, as compared to Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman, who are yet to cross the checkered flag to take a win. The NASCAR insider came to the defense of the Rick Hendrick-owned enterprise, giving a short breakdown of the process of building the four cars:

"All four Hendrick cars are assembled using the exact same methods that draw parts from the same collection and even use the exact same technicians for certain parts of the process. There is no favoritism."

The fan's comments may have also stemmed from the fact that Elliott and Bowman qualified second and third for last weekend's race at the Martinsville Speedway but they had fourth and 27th place finishes.

While Larson and Byron have scored victories over the first seven races this year, Chase Elliott sits at third place in the standings, having crossed the finish line to achieve two Top fives and four Top 10s. He has, however, failed to win any stages this season, which the #5 driver and the #24 have both done. Alex Bowman takes fifth place in the standings, having achieved a single Top five finish and five Top 10s.

Elliott has secured one win this season, at the pre-season event of the Clash at the Bowman Gray stadium, where he qualified in pole position and converted it into a victory.

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"I couldn’t get that back for us.": Chase Elliott reflects on his performance at Martinsville race

Chase Elliott (9) pit crew go to work during the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway, March 30th 2025 - Source: Imagn

After securing a second-place start for the Cook Out 400 at the Martinsville Speedway last weekend, Chase Elliott secured the lead of the race in lap 94 but lost it when he pitted under the caution conditions, giving eventual race-winner Denny Hamlin the opening to snatch the victory in the second half of the race. Speaking after the event, Elliott admitted that it was not having enough command over the situation that caused the fourth place ending for the HMS driver:

“We really needed control there. When you get into the second half of these races, it just gets so hard to make ground up. You saw that with Christopher (Bell) pressuring [Hamlin]. It just means a lot to have control, and unfortunately, I couldn’t get that back for us. But overall, it was a really good effort.” [via NASCAR]

This weekend, the Darlington Raceway will host the Goodyear 400, which takes place on Sunday at 3:00 p.m. ET.