Getty Alex Bowman celebrates a win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The No. 48 Ally Racing Chevrolet Camaro will have a new scheme for Alex Bowman‘s return to Phoenix Raceway. He will drive a stock car highlighting Best Friends Animal Society during the NASCAR Cup Series race on March 13.
Ally Racing and Hendrick Motorsports provided the first look at the animal-themed scheme on March 8. The Chevrolet features a white base with the Best Friends logo on the sides and the Ally Racing logo on the hood. The side of the stock car, however, features several paw prints in different colors.
We’re headed west this week with some four-legged allies by our side! 🧡💜
Send us a 🐶 or 🐱 emoji if you’re excited to see the new #Ally48 @bestfriends machine on track at @phoenixraceway.
Bowman will head to Phoenix fresh off his first win of the season. He has a guaranteed spot in the playoffs along with Austin Cindric and teammate Kyle Larson, provided there aren’t more than 16 race winners in the regular season. Now he will strive to pursue another win, which would increase his and Ally Racing’s donation to a local shelter from $4,800 to $10,000. The Barn House AZ will be the recipient of a donation, regardless of where Bowman finishes.
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Bowman Hopes To Break a Streak With Best Friends
Under the stage ending 🟡, @Alex_Bowman visited pit road for four tires, fuel and left side damage repair.
While Bowman has seven career Cup Series wins, none have taken place with an animal-themed scheme on his stock car. He has made multiple attempts in the past, but he has dealt with on-track incidents. Now he will strive to break this streak at Phoenix Raceway.
“I feel like for some reason, over the last couple years, whenever I’ve driven any car that has animals, I end up cursed,” Bowman told Heavy ahead of his win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “We had Roscoe and Finn both on the car for multiple races with Nationwide Pet Insurance back in the day, and anytime we ran that car, something bad happened. And then we’re in the Best Friends car, we crashed pretty early. So hopefully, we can kind of eliminate that and have a really good day.”
The Nationwide Pet Insurance scheme debuted during the 2019 race at Auto Club Speedway. Bowman qualified 23rd overall in the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro before he finished 21st overall. Two years later, he highlighted Best Friends Animal Society for the spring race at Phoenix Raceway, but he sustained damage during an incident also featuring Ross Chastain and Austin Dillon.
Bowman Will Pursue His First Win at Phoenix Raceway
The trip to Phoenix Raceway will be Bowman’s 14th as a Cup Series driver. He will strive to break his animal-themed “curse” while also pursuing his first trip to Victory Lane at the one-mile track.
Bowman’s first four starts at Phoenix took place during his time with BK Racing and Tommy Baldwin Racing. He never finished inside the top 30, but he changed that trend during his part-time 2016 season in the No. 88. Bowman suited up for the playoff race at Phoenix Raceway and won the Pole Award. He then led 194 laps before finishing sixth overall.
Bowman hasn’t cracked the top 10 since the 2016 season, but he has five top-20 finishes at the one-mile track. This includes 13th and 18th-place runs during the 2021 season while working with Ally Racing.