“Millions of People Deal With Anxiety”: When Alex Bowman Received Massive Support From NASCAR Fans After Insensitive Comment by Analyst

NASCAR’s stance toward sensitive topics such as racism and mental health in the sport has been well set by the governing body, with a no-nonsense approach towards the same. Over the years, many instances with several drivers have proven how the provenance views such social issues and where the sport as a whole stands on them.

Back in the year 2020, Alex Bowman shared his fair share of such controversy. The now Hendrick Motorsports driver at the time battled with anxiety during a race that year, which was subsequently mocked by a senior journalist who coined a derogatory hashtag and mistook the exchange as humorous.

During a crucial moment in a NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at the Charlotte Roval, Bowman had communicated to his crew that he was feeling unwell, with his continued participation in the playoffs hanging in the balance due to him feeling anxious inside the car.

This prompted Jim Utter to label Bowman as “Anxiety Alex,” sparking controversy, particularly from those who advocate for professionalism in reporting.

Utter faced intense criticism for his remarks, leading him to block numerous critics on his social media, though he left the controversial tweets visible for several hours. During this period, fans rallied behind Bowman, showing their support.

Utter eventually clarified his stance on the controversy

Eventually, he issued an apology via a tweet, “Yesterday during the race, I tweeted a hashtag about Alex Bowman. I responded to what I thought was humorous banter about anxiety between himself and his crew chief on his radio. I’d like to apologize to anyone who believed I was making light of mental health issues, which couldn’t be further from the truth. Alex and I had a great conversation this afternoon in which I reiterated that to him.”

Responding to the outpouring of support, Bowman also took to Twitter, expressing his gratitude with a message: “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.”

With the whole controversy now well behind the driver and the community as a whole, the experience comes as a lesson to everyone in the fraternity that even a light-hearted joke could end up being taken in the wrong context, especially with topics such as the above with their inherent volatile nature.

About the author

Neha Dwivedi

Neha Dwivedi is an experienced NASCAR Journalist at The SportsRush, having penned over 5500 articles on the sport to date. She was a seasoned writer long before she got into the world of NASCAR. Although she loves to see Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch win the races, she equally supports the emerging talents in the CARS Late Model and ARCA Menards Series.. For her work in NASCAR she has earned accolades from journalists like Susan Wade of The Athletic, as well as NASCAR drivers including Thad Moffit and Corey Lajoie. Her favorite moment from NASCAR was witnessing Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. win the championship trophies. Outside the racetrack world, Neha immerses herself in the literary world, exploring both fiction and non-fiction.

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