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LOUDON, NH – JUNE 27: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, performs a burnout to celebrate winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series LENOX Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on June 27, 2010 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images for NASCAR)
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LOUDON, NH – JUNE 27: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, performs a burnout to celebrate winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series LENOX Industrial Tools 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on June 27, 2010 in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images for NASCAR)
It was a sad day for NASCAR fans when Jimmie Johnson drove around the Phoenix Raceway to complete his final laps. Having entertained audiences for 19 years, he retired from the Cup Series with a tremendously rich legacy.
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Now in 2021, Alex Bowman has an incredible responsibility of guiding the No.48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro to some equally great results. Ahead of the season, he praised the Hendrick Motorsports icon that had spent two seasons with him as a teammate.
Bowman said, “I feel like obviously taking over the #88 from Dale Jr was something that probably helped prepare me for this quite a bit. But obviously being teammates with Jimmie for the last couple of years has been really special.”
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INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – SEPTEMBER 07: Alex Bowman, driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet, talks with Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Ally Chevrolet, during qualifying for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 08, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Incredibly special to take over the No.48 car of Jimmie Johnson, stated Alex Bowman
“I learnt so much from him, it’s been unbelievable to have that guide to lean on and to learn from. So to take over the #48 is incredibly special, obviously with the accomplishments that he had in this car.”
Even though Johnson’s performances paled in comparison to his past glorious years, he kept his fighting spirit going until last year. Eventually, when he decided to depart the Cup Series, the seven-time champion felt Bowman was the right person to take over his car.
“So gonna do my best to just continue to add to the legacy of this car, and excited to share that really with my race team, you know.”
Bowman’s first acid test comes in the form of the 2021 Daytona 500
“The #48 means a lot to Greg, he obviously won a lot of championships as a race engineer with this car. So for him to become crew chief of it is really cool, and all the guys are excited to get going,” concluded Bowman.
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HOMESTEAD, FL – NOVEMBER 19: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, practices for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/NASCAR via Getty Images)
The 27-year-old’s first big challenge comes right off the bat with the Daytona 500 in a week’s time. Alongside crew chief Greg Ives, Bowman will identify the event as a great opportunity to showcase his potential.
So while the season is long and grueling, the new Hendrick Motorsports No.48 will do well to get off to a good start. With each passing race, hopefully then, he will look to maintain the legacy created by one of the sport’s most iconic drivers as well.
