The Charlotte Roval hosts a Cup Series playoff elimination race on Sunday afternoon (2 p.m. ET on NBC). This is the final opportunity for drivers to move on to the Round of 8, and it serves as a big opportunity for Alex Bowman.
The Hendrick Motorsports driver enters the weekend fifth in the playoff standings. He is 26 points above the cutline heading to a track where he leads all playoff drivers with an average finish of 6.4.
Bowman has not yet won at the road course, but he has two top-five finishes and five top-10s in five starts. His best finish was second behind teammate Chase Elliott in 2019, and his worst finish was 10th in 2021. Bowman missed the 2022 Roval race due to a concussion.
Bowman is one of four playoff drivers with an average finish better than 10.0. The other three are Tyler Reddick (7.0), Elliott (8.2), and Joey Logano (8.7). Daniel Suarez has the worst average finish (27.0) at the Roval among the remaining playoff drivers.
Of course, delivering top-10 finishes is not the only important factor at the Roval considering that it hosts an elimination race. Scoring stage points can be crucial for drivers simply trying to build their cushion, especially if they do not pit before the stages end in an attempt to chase a win.
Bowman drives for Hendrick Motorsports, a team capable of winning each week, so stage points have been less of a priority at the road course.
Bowman scored five stage points in the inaugural Roval race in 2018. He added five more during the 2020 race and two more during the 2021 race.
Which strategy will Bowman use this weekend as he takes on the reconfigured Roval? Will he pit before the end of the first two stages to gain track position for the final run to the checkered flag, giving up stage points in the process? Will he stay out at the end of stages 1 and 2 so he can gain maximum stage points and just build upon his current cushion?
Bowman isn't providing any details just yet.
"The 48 is currently sitting good in playoff points, but certainly not close enough for comfort," Bowman said, per Chevrolet. "Our Ally Racing team has been really locked in throughout the playoffs and we're going to show up ready to perform in effort to secure a spot in the Round of 8."
