Alex Bowman signed a one-year contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports and will retire from NASCAR Cup Series racing after the 2027 season, the team announced on July 23.
After the 2027 season, @Alex_Bowman will retire from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition. Until then, there's one more chapter left to write. pic.twitter.com/GvoCn8BEsM
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) July 23, 2026
Bowman, 33, missed four races this season while battling vertigo. He has four top-10 finishes in 17 starts and will likely miss the NASCAR playoffs/Chase for the first time since 2023.
"I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what’s next, and this feels like the right decision at the right time," Bowman said via Hendrick Motorsports' announcement. "The sport asks a lot of you, and I’ve learned it’s important
to listen to your body and make the right choices for yourself."
2027 will be Bowman's 10th full-time season with Hendrick Motorsports in the Cup Series. He has totaled eight wins and 49 top-5 finishes through nine seasons entering this weekend's Brickyard 400 race at Indianapolis.
Bowman has been a fixture in the Cup Series since his age-21 season, when he drove for BK Racing. After a year with Tommy Baldwin Racing at the back of the field, Bowman vaulted onto center stage in 2016 when driving for Hendrick as a substitute driver for Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the No. 88. The Tucson, Arizona native recorded three top-10s in 10 starts in relief of Earnhardt, then was named the full-time driver for the 2018 season upon Earnhardt's retirement.
Bowman has battled injuries throughout his Hendrick Motorsports tenure, including a concussion in 2022 and a back injury in a sprint car crash in 2023. But he's been successful overall at Hendrick, with seven playoff berths in eight seasons before the 2026 campaign.
The news creates a rare thing in NASCAR — a full-time opening with the Cup Series' all-time winningest team, and more than a year before it has to be filled.
This story will be updated.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Alex Bowman signs 1-year extension with Hendrick, retiring after 2027 NASCAR Cup season
