Team Leader Blake Harris first season with Hendrick Motorsports was disrupted by Alex Bowman suffering an injury that knocked him out of the No. 48 for three races and contributed to Bowman missing the playoffs for the first time in six seasons with Hendrick Motorsports.
Undeterred, Harris continues towards the 2024 season ready to deliver after going through a year, he would never have written a screenplay.
“This sport is very humbling,” Harris told NBC Sports after his first season with Hendrick. “The second you think you have it figured out – you can go out and dominate, have a killer race and be the fastest car in the world – and the next week you have it completely handed to you. »
Bowman and Harris began their first season together with some success. They won the Daytona 500 pole and finished fifth in the race. They then finished in the top 10 in six of the first seven races. They also took the points lead heading into the spring race at Richmond.
“Everyone at HMS worked really hard throughout the winter and we were able to hit the ground running,” Harris said. “And actually it just started with Daytona.”
The situation changed after the Talladega spring race. Bowman suffered a fractured vertebra in a sprint car accident that ruled him out of the No. 48 for four weeks. He returned for the Coca-Cola 600 on May 29.
Once Bowman returned from his injury, the No. 48 team went through a period where it struggled to compete. Bowman had only four top-10 finishes in the final 23 races of the season. He has only reached the second qualifying round once as his average starting position fell to 17.2, 3.2 places lower than in 2022.
Qualifying was only the start of the weekend’s difficulties. They continued racing as Bowman failed to challenge for stage points and wins.
“We didn’t qualify well this year,” Harris said. “Certainly, from the summer onwards we seemed to be struggling to put in a good lap and it just happened to be our weekend. Many times it was difficult to succeed. Even if we could pass, it could be late in the races when the other guys’ stuff wore off and we came back.
“…We did the first races, I think, seven or eight races before it disappeared and I think we only had two stages where we didn’t score stage points. And then he comes back, and we don’t qualify as well as we would like. We didn’t do our best and we really struggled to score points in the stage.
Bowman flatly agreed with that assessment during a playoff appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. He said the team got its teeth “kicked” in the second half of the Cup season.
These struggles kept Bowman and Harris out of the playoffs. They also brought an advantage: Bowman and Harris were able to build their relationship through better communication.
Harris admits it’s easier for the driver and crew chief to communicate when things are going well. They can celebrate big moments and focus on what they do well. They can spend free time talking about topics outside of NASCAR that they find entertaining.
For Bowman and Harris, these conversations are mostly about dirt racing or Bowman’s eclectic car collection.
When a team is struggling in all aspects of a race weekend, there have to be tough conversations. The team manager and driver must consider all possible explanations for why the team does not qualify or perform well. Personal feelings should be put aside so they can determine the best steps toward improved performance.
The difficult conversations became a blessing for Bowman and Harris.
“When (Alex) came back and we started some of the summer months, we were struggling,” Harris said. “I remember telling him several times, ‘Listen, if the car is in bad shape, tell me.’ Sometimes I don’t feel like I can make him understand fast enough. (The car) could hurt him, but he might have tried to tone it down a little bit.
“I’m like, ‘Man, we don’t have to do this. Just tell me what it is. I do the same thing. I know he’s doing everything he can on the track and if there’s something I see that we can do a little differently to try to help the car, I try to pass that information on to him.
The result of these conversations is that Harris and Bowman feel like they are in a very good position heading into 2024. They have confidence in each other and in the No. 48 team’s ability to compete.
Despite the improved communication, it would have been fairly easy for Hendrick Motorsports to make a change to the No. 48 team. After all, sports are a fickle business.
Teams that have a successful season are often gutted during periods of difficulty. Take the NFL for example. The Carolina Panthers have had three head coaches and three interim head coaches since owner David Tepper purchased the team in 2018.
Hendrick Motorsports did not choose this option because the No. 48 team had a difficult season. Owner Rick Hendrick and all the other executives have expressed support while trying to figure out how to help the team get back on track.
“Start with Mr. H at the top and Mr. Andrews and Chad (Knaus), all those guys,” Harris said. “I mean, (Jeff) Gordon every week. If we had a rough week, the first thing was, “Dude, hang in there.” You have situations that you must overcome. That’s definitely not how we would have written it.
“They understand the setbacks we had throughout the season and wanted to know what they could do to help us get stronger. They didn’t have to do it this way.
