Hendrick Motorsports announced on Tuesday that Alex Bowman is set to drive the #48 Chevrolet in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. They really did it twice.
In a move that had long been speculated due to Ally Financial’s primary sponsorship deal with the #48 team, Hendrick Motorsports announced Tuesday that Alex Bowman is set to vacate the #88 Chevrolet after the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season and move to the #48 Chevrolet to replace seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson.
Johnson announced after the 2019 season that the 2020 season would be his 19th and final season as a full-time driver.
The month prior, Ally Financial had extended their full-time primary sponsorship deal with the #48 team through the 2023 season.
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While it has yet to be confirmed who will actually be replacing Johnson in the team’s four-car lineup alongside Bowman, who has already driven for the team since 2018, Chase Elliott and William Byron, we now know that Bowman is set to carry on the legacy of the #48 Chevrolet once Johnson retires.
Bowman signed only a one-year extension back in mid-May, and his overall lack of sponsorship relative to Elliott and Byron, who are both under contract through 2022, resulted in it making sense to move him to the fully-backed #48 entry.
While Hendrick Motorsports didn’t officially announce this news back when it began to float around as a possibility in the spring, they did “announce” it before they officially announcement.
Prior to the confirmation, every single tweet Hendrick Motorsports published on Tuesday, October 6 literally spelled out that the announcement was on its way.
Take a look at the first word of each tweet.
Alex Bowman’s average finish at the @CLTMotorSpdwy roval leads the field with 3.0! 😎
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
Catch all the road-course action by tuning in to NBC Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET. pic.twitter.com/UrkvgV98CH
Alex.
Bowman is looking to lock up a spot in the #NASCARPlayoffs Round of 8 and earn a spot in the Championship 4 to race for the title at his home track @phoenixraceway! pic.twitter.com/SZbWwiWFZo
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
Bowman.
Will you be tuning into Sunday’s roval race from @CLTMotorSpdwy?
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
Be sure to catch these four Chevrolets when the green flag waves at 2:30 p.m. on NBC! pic.twitter.com/pWv4kUef1A
Will.
Drive like a spot in the Round of 8 is on the line! 👊#NASCARPlayoffs | @CLTMotorSpdwy pic.twitter.com/bdHzcXMVTk
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
Drive.
The #NASCARPlayoff action is heating up as we take on the final race of the Round of 12 @CLTMotorSpdwy roval. 🔥
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
Gear up for all the road-course excitement by signing up for our free email list to receive special content, discounts and offers: https://t.co/ICP1xBPRQ1 pic.twitter.com/txCJZG9Vfv
The.
#Ally48 team is geared up and road-course ready!@allyracing | @CLTMotorSpdwy pic.twitter.com/ydG0hD3MkD
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
#Ally48.
In the zone. 💪 pic.twitter.com/gGfHoQEnGG
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
In.
2021.#DoItRight | @AlexBowman88 pic.twitter.com/wziOEjCqNW
— Hendrick Motorsports (@TeamHendrick) October 6, 2020
2021.
Put it all together, and you’ll see that “Alex Bowman will drive the #Ally48 in 2021.”
Sure enough, that news was confirmed with the final tweet of this sequence and with subsequent posts by the team.
Meanwhile, the wait to see who will actually replace Johnson in Hendrick Motorsports’ 2021 driver lineup continues. Will that driver drive the #88 Chevrolet, or will that car be renumbered?