After removing himself from the NASCAR Cup Series race at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) two weekends ago, Hendrick Motorsports' Alex Bowman was forced to miss this past Sunday afternoon's race at Phoenix Raceway following a vertigo diagnosis.
Myatt Snider stepped in for Bowman behind the wheel of the No. 48 Chevrolet in the third stage at COTA, and Anthony Alfredo filled in for him at Phoenix. His status for this weekend's race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway remains in question, but JR Motorsports O'Reilly Auto Parts Series driver Justin Allgaier is expected to fill in, if necessary.
During the Phoenix broadcast, Fox Sports lead announcer Mike Joy made a comment about Bowman's health that raised some eyebrows, noting that the vertigo diagnosis was unrelated to Bowman getting out of the car in the middle of the third stage at COTA.
Mike Joy clarifies Alex Bowman comment
It was confusing, to say the least, given the fact that his COTA decision and vertigo diagnosis came just days apart. Sure enough, Joy corrected the error on social media on Tuesday and plans to correct himself on air during this Sunday's broadcast of the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Fox Sports 1.
I misspoke Sunday about @Alex_Bowman's vertigo, which he experienced during the COTA race.
— Mike Joy (@mikejoy500) March 10, 2026
Apologies to Alex; I'll correct and update on Sunday's telecast. Hope he's recovered and back on track soon.
Joy noted that he meant to state that Bowman's vertigo was not related to the concussion he suffered in a crash at Texas Motor Speedway late in the 2022 season, which caused him to miss five races.
For some who asked for details..
— Mike Joy (@mikejoy500) March 10, 2026
I mistakenly said Alex Bowman's vertigo that sidelined him for PHX wasn't related to the COTA situation. It was a continuation of that.
I intended to say it wasn't related to a prior concussion (per HMS' Jeff Andrews), and that got crossed up.
Of course, given how head injuries work, it's not out of the question that someone could experience symptoms from a concussion years later.
However, that is reportedly not the case with Bowman, according to Hendrick Motorsports president Jeff Andrews, and good on Joy for publicly correcting a remark that certainly had fans somewhat confused, given the timing of the diagnosis.
Bowman, who is now 77 points below the provisional playoff cut line, has missed races in three of the past five seasons. He also missed three races in 2023 after suffering a back injury in a sprint car crash.
Sunday's Pennzoil 400 is set to be shown live on Fox Sports 1 from Las Vegas Motor Speedway starting at 4:00 p.m. ET. Begin a free trial of FuboTV and catch all of the action!