Hendrick Motorsports breaks silence on disqualification appeal move

Lydia Mee

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Hendrick Motorsports breaks silence on disqualification appeal move image

Hendrick Motorsports has released a statement after the disqualification of their driver, Alex Bowman, from the crucial playoff race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The disqualification resulted from Bowman’s No. 48 Chevrolet being found underweight during a post-race inspection at the Charlotte Roval. 

This decision effectively ends Bowman’s pursuit of the coveted 2024 championship title. The organization, however, has not ruled out appealing NASCAR’s decision.

Bowman’s disqualification came at a vital part of the playoffs as Charlotte was the last race of the Round of 12.

NASCAR Cup Series Managing Director Brad Moran elaborated on the sequence of inspections that led to the ruling, commenting: 

"Unfortunately, the 48 had an issue (and) did not meet minimum weight.

"We put the car to the side. We continued on. We ... gave them the opportunity to fuel the car as well as purge the water system and add water. So we gave them every opportunity to make minimum weight. We ran them back through. Unfortunately, they were light again."

In the wake of this decision, other playoff competitors, notably Joey Logano, have found themselves in advantageous positions. Logano now occupies Bowman’s vacant playoff slot. The opportunity affords him another shot at securing a third title.

Hendrick Motorsports has since released the following statement, confirming that they will investigate the situation and will decide whether to launch an appeal later today. They posted to social media:

"We are working to understand the issue and will make a decision Monday about whether to submit an appeal."

NASCAR Cup Series: Current Standings

  1. Kyle Larson - 4052 points
  2. Christopher Bell - 4032 points
  3. Tyler Reddick - 4029 points
  4. William Byron - 4023 points
  5. Ryan Blaney - 4019 points
  6. Denny Hamlin - 4015 points
  7. Chase Elliott - 4014 points
  8. Joey Logano - 4012 points
  9. Alex Bowman - 2195 points
  10. Austin Cindric - 2174 points
  11. Ty Gibbs - 2150 points
  12. Martin Truex Jr - 2146 points
  13. Daniel Suárez - 2127 points
  14. Brad Keselowski - 2120 points
  15. Chase Briscoe - 2110 points
  16. Harrison Burton - 2065 points
  17. Chris Buescher - 830 points
  18. Bubba Wallace - 824 points
  19. Ross Chastain - 821 points
  20. Kyle Busch - 711 points
  21. Carson Hocevar - 604 points
  22. Todd Gilliland - 579 points
  23. Michael McDowell - 574 points
  24. Ricky Stenhouse Jr - 543 points
  25. Noah Gragson - 522 points
  26. Ryan Preece - 507 points
  27. Josh Berry - 506 points
  28. Austin Dillon - 483 points
  29. Zane Smith - 460 points
  30. Justin Haley - 459 points
  31. Corey LaJoie - 457 points
  32. Erik Jones - 456 points
  33. Daniel Hemric - 455 points
  34. John H. Nemechek - 395 points
  35. Kaz Grala - 188 points
  36. Cody Ware - 130 points
  37. Joey Hand - 43 points
  38. Jimmie Johnson - 40 points
  39. Derek Kraus - 32 points
  40. David Ragan - 17 points
  41. Kamui Kobayashi - 8 points
  42. Will Brown - 6 points
  43. Juan Pablo Montoya - 5 points
  44. Cam Waters - 2 points

Lydia Mee

Lydia Mee Photo

Lydia Mee is a passionate motorsport journalist based in the UK. She has a background in covering Formula 1, NASCAR, electric vehicles, and other various motorsports and has interviewed current and former drivers such as Mario Andretti, Alain Prost, and Johnny Herbert amongst others. She's a strong advocate for women in motorsport and a more diverse industry. Her work has been seen on Sports Illustrated, On SI and Newsweek. She can be followed at @lydiameemotorsport on Instagram and @LMeeMotorsport on X.