Hendrick Motorsports Star Issues Public Apology Following Darlington Disaster

After being the runner-up in Darlington thrice, Kyle Larson finally added the much-sought-after feather to his cap in the inaugural playoff race. William Byron wasn’t far behind, nabbing fourth. On the flip side, while Chase Elliott managed to keep his nose clean, sliding into the top 10, the #48 driver, thanks to a twist of fate and perhaps a dicey decision, landed in a distant P33.

Having slid down the ranks so dramatically, the Hendrick Motorsports driver didn’t beat around the bush. He took to Instagram, owning up to his track antics and offering an explanation for his ill-fated move.

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With 50 laps remaining in the race while the #99 of Trackhouse Racing and the #48 of Hendrick Motorsports were fighting for a top-10 spot, Daniel Suarez tried overtaking Alex Bowman to improve his position. But the #48 wasn’t ready to throw in the towel and, in an attempt to guard his turf, tried to fend off Suarez.

Things got heated, and in the blink of an eye, this standoff saw Suarez tangling with Bowman, leading to a colossal crash. To add salt to the wound, an innocent Harrison Burton, tailing close behind, also got ensnared in the wreck.

The aftermath was stark. What began as a quest for top-10 glory for Alex Bowman and Daniel Suarez ended in grim P33 and P34 finishes. But as the smoke cleared, Bowman stepped up to the plate, publicly shouldering the blame for the disaster on the track through his Instagram story.

He candidly remarked on his Instagram Story, “Bad block, but that’s on me for sure. I had no idea he got through outside. Just trying to hold on all the track positions we could. We were super fast on long runs and just struggled tight on short runs, and needed to keep our track positions we could. Yeah, bad block; cars crashed.”

While Bowman hinted at an underlying tension, Suarez, on the other hand, aired his grievances loudly in the post-race interview, taking Bowman to task.

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According to motorsports.com, upon exiting the infield care center, Daniel Suarez minced no words in criticizing Bowman. During his chat with NBC Sports, he labeled Bowman’s defense tactic as “dumb,” lamenting the wasted effort of his team, which had burned the midnight oil all week to arm him with a top-tier vehicle, only to see it bite the dust.

“He has to use his brain a little more. We have been racing here for 3.5 hours, and to wreck with 50 laps to go is a little bit dumb. He just has to be smarter. It’s a shame. My team did a very good job. I feel like today we had a top-ten car, and all we have to show for it is a wrecked race car.”

The tit-for-tat didn’t stop with the racers. Travis Mack, the crew chief behind the #99 chariot at Trackhouse Racing, also jumped into the fray through a Twitter volley on X, rubbishing Bowman’s claim that he had flipped off the #48 driver.

Which was worse? For Bowman to make that defensive move? Or for Suarez to call the HMS driver ‘dumb’?

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