Justin Allgaier Substituting for Alex Bowman at Las Vegas

Hendrick Motorsports announced Wednesday morning that Alex Bowman will not compete in the NASCAR Cup Series event at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 15 as he continues to recover from vertigo.

Bowman exited the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet during the March 1 race at Circuit of The Americas, experiencing vertigo symptoms, and Myatt Snider finished the race for the team. Last week at Bowman's home track of Phoenix Raceway, Anthony Alfredo piloted the No. 48 entry.

“Alex continues to work closely with doctors toward being medically cleared, but he’s still experiencing some lingering symptoms,” said Jeff Andrews, president and general manager of Hendrick Motorsports. “He’s put a lot into the recovery process, and we will continue to support him every step of the way. Our priority remains making sure Alex is fully ready before returning to the race car.”

Justin Allgaier will fill in for Bowman this weekend at Las Vegas. The 2024 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series champion won at Las Vegas last March driving for JR Motorsports.

Allgaier competed in the Daytona 500 for JR Motorsports, fielding an open entry in the NASCAR Cup Series season opener. The 39-year-old led three laps in that race before being involved in an incident on lap 124. He is a 29-time race winner in the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series.

Allgaier also previously served as a substitute for Hendrick Motorsports in 2024, filling in for Kyle Larson. Allgaier started the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the No. 5 Chevrolet when Larson did not return from the Indianapolis 500 in time to start the second leg of his attempt at the Memorial Day Double.

Rain and lightning ended the 2024 Coca-Cola 600 after 249 laps, with Larson unable to climb in the car before the red flag that ultimately concluded the race. As a result, Allgaier finished 13th after starting at the rear of the field in that event.

The NASCAR Cup Series Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube takes the green flag at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 15. Coverage of the event is avialable on FS1, the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

-Photo credit: Dirk Bizub/Racing America