Things were bleak for Hendrick Motorsports back in the month of April when one of its star drivers had just returned after recuperating from a broken tibia, while another driver fell victim to an accident. But the tides are on the verge of changing, as the drivers of HMS are ready to take back the reigns of the game.

With that being said, the first step toward achieving the goal is the return of its former points leader, Alex Bowman. It is been a month already since he suffered from a broken vertebra during a sprint car race. 

Nevertheless, Bowman is ready to take back his seat behind the wheels at Charlotte Speedway for the most coveted race of the year. Still, there is something that is not sitting well with the fans.

Hendrick Motorsports Spills the News of the Return of Their Driver for the Coca-Cola 600

The Coca-Cola 600 has been considered the most grueling race of every season as it acts as a deciding factor for the drivers. It helps them to collect extra stage points in order to seize their berths for the playoffs. And the drivers of Hendrick Motorsports are in dire need of those points, especially Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman.

Although Elliott has returned to racing after rehabilitating from a broken tibia, it is Bowman who is receiving the most attention. He is set to return after being sidelined for a month, his team announced. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver had a medically approved practice session at North Wilkesboro Speedway, where he drove for 170 laps.  

NASCAR analyst Bob Pockrass let the fans know about Bowman’s testing in NWB Speedway with his Twitter account. He wrote, “Bowman said at the test they did drop the jack to see how his back would handle it and it did not hurt. He also did not hurt during the 2-hour test where he did 170 laps at North Wilkesboro. … his longest run was 90 laps.”

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After the practice, medics gave the driver their clearance and deemed the driver to be fit for racing. As per apnews.com, Bowman disclosed, “There’s some discomfort here and there, and there are things that I do that don’t feel good. But that’s just part of it and stuff I’m going to have to deal with. … At the end of a six-hour race, I’m probably not going to feel my best.”

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The analyst also jotted down the provisions of NASCAR that “allows a test when coming back from injury.” 

The Fans Lay Bare Their Mixed Reactions After the Revelation of the News

As soon as the news reached that fans, they showed mixed reactions about the planning for the practice test that Bowman and the team ran.

One of the fans wrote, “Was this a private test just for him? When was this?”

“Did Bowman test before the star race? If that’s the case was information accumulated  by Hendrick before race ?”

“Was he doing a tire test, or was @TeamHendrick allowed to let him test?”

Another wrote, “I thought Hendrick gets unlimited testing time on road courses as part of their partnership with NASCAR for the garage 56 entry at Le Mans. Why wouldn’t he just test at a road course, unless maybe Wilksboro could help the short track package?”

“IIRC, given it’s after the event, we’re all good. Still, 600mi is one hell of a way to confirm his back is fine”

While Alex Bowman had been leading the points table before, his injury made him fall down to the 17th position. Moreover, NASCAR provided the HMS prodigy with a waiver that he would be still eligible for the playoffs, should he qualify. Now it is to be seen how far this driver can challenge himself in order to book his seat for the most critical part of the season.

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