TUCSON, Arizona — Tucson’s Alex Bowman is a non-controversial NASCAR driver but recently, controversy found him.
It started when he admitted he was feeling anxiety over Sunday’s playoff race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Before the race race, Bowman told his crew was feeling uneasy from the pressure of trying to advance to the next round of the playoffs.
“Before races and high pressure situations, you’ll have that, I guess.”
That prompted motorsports journalist Jim Utter, during the race, to use the hashtag, "Anxiety Alex" three times while tweeting about Bowman. It happened as the Tucson driver was taking the lead.
It turns out we are coming off mental health awareness week, and the racing community rushed to Alex’s defense on social media. Meanwhile, he finished in the top ten to advance to the next round.
"I feel like I was really stressed out. It means a lot to me to make the round of eight."
Utter then tweeted that he’d like to, "Apologize to anyone who believed I was making light of mental health issues, which couldn’t be further from the truth."
Utter mentioned that he spoke to Bowman.
Bowman then tweeted, "Hey everybody, just wanted to say thanks for the support. Millions of people deal with anxiety and everybody handles it differently. It was a stressful week and I’m glad to be through it and focused on Kansas."
Hey everybody, just wanted to say thanks for the support. Millions of people deal with anxiety and everybody handles it differently. It was a stressful week and I’m glad to be through it and focused on Kansas.
— Alex Bowman (@AlexBowman88) October 12, 2020
If Bowman can climb into the top four in the standings over the next three races, the Ironwood Ridge graduate would compete for the NASCAR Cup Series championship at Phoenix International Raceway.
