NASCAR on FOX announcer apologizes to Alex Bowman for mistake

NASCAR Cup Series News Wednesday, March 11, 2026 at 1:04 PM ET •By Chris Deeley

Long-time NASCAR announcer Mike Joy has apologized to Alex Bowman on social media for misspeaking about his current health issues.

Bowman was sideline from last weekend's race at Phoenix with vertigo, with lingering symptoms set to keep him out of Sunday's race at Las Vegas too as Hendrick Motorsports manage his recovery.

Joy said on the broadcast Sunday that the No. 48 car driver's vertigo was unrelated to the health problems which saw him hand over his car to Myatt Snider the previous weekend at COTA, and has since taken to Twitter to correct his point – apologizing for his slip of the tongue.

He had intended to make the point that Bowman's absence wasn't related to a prior concussion, with the 32-year-old having missed five races with concussion symptoms in 2022.

NASCAR TODAY: Kyle Larson in explicit verdict, Cup star hit with 0.08mph speeding penalty

Mike Joy: I misspoke on broadcast

Joy posted on Tuesday: "I misspoke Sunday about Alex Bowman's vertigo, which he experienced during the COTA race. Apologies to Alex; I'll correct and update on Sunday's telecast. Hope he's recovered and back on track soon."

He added: "For some who asked for details..I mistakenly said Alex Bowman's vertigo that sidelined him for PHX wasn't related to the COTA situation. It was a continuation of that.

"I intended to say it wasn't related to a prior concussion (per HMS' Jeff Andrews), and that got crossed up."

Anthony Alfredo suited up for the full race distance at Phoenix last weekend, but Alfredo won't be doing back-to-back races, the team confirming on Wednesday that Bowman will be replaced by Justin Allgaier to race in Nevada this weekend.