Alex Bowman and Hendrick Motorsports are working on a multi-year deal to keep him in the No. 48 car

Rick Hendrick calls negotiations a "formality" after Bowman's second win of 2021

After taking the checkered flag at Dover International Speedway on Sunday, Alex Bowman has now won multiple races in a season for the first time in his Cup career and now leads all Hendrick Motorsports drivers with two on the 2021 season. And as a reward, Rick Hendrick and his company are seeing to it that Bowman gets to race and win in their cars for years to come.

After the conclusion of Sunday's Drydene 400 at Dover, Rick Hendrick revealed while speaking to reporters that Hendrick Motorsports is currently in the process of working out a multi-year contract extension for Alex Bowman. Bowman, who has driven for the company since 2016 and full-time since 2018, signed a one-year contract extension with the team last May that was set to expire at the end of 2021.

"We've already started, it should be done anytime. We want Alex there, he wants to be there," Hendrick said. "It's just, kind of at this point, a formality."

News of Bowman having a long-term future at Hendrick came after he headlined one of the most remarkable days in the team's history, as Bowman led the first ever 1-2-3-4 sweep for Hendrick when he took the lead from teammate Kyle Larson and paced the final 97 laps at Dover to earn his second victory of the season. Bowman had previously won at Richmond in April, where he took the lead on a late-race restart.

Bowman's journey to long-term stability with a top Cup Series team was far from a bed of roses: Bowman drove his first two seasons in the Cup Series for lesser race teams in 2014 & 2015, and was left without a ride for the 2016 season after being suddenly fired during the offseason. Midway through that season, Bowman received an opportunity to serve as the substitute driver for an ailing Dale Earnhardt Jr., and he would remain close to the team after earning three top-10 finishes, winning a pole, and leading 200 laps. When Earnhardt retired at the end of the 2017 season, Bowman was tabbed as his replacement for 2018.

Bowman has since earned four victories with Hendrick, while also earning the pole for the Daytona 500 twice (2018, 2021). After driving the No. 88 Chevrolet in his first three seasons with the team, Bowman moved over to the No. 48 Chevrolet for 2021 following the retirement of seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson.

For a driver that had to go through the hustle and grind of simply trying to get a ride earlier in his career, Bowman expressed just how grateful he was to have the opportunity to not have to worry about his long-term future. Especially at a team like Hendrick's.

"Just being at Hendrick Motorsports is obviously where I want to be. I want to continue to work with [sponsor] Ally and drive the No. 48 car," Bowman said. "We've been working on it, and I want to be there, they want me to drive their racecar. It's cool to have a guy like Rick Hendrick say he wants you to continue driving his racecar. It means a lot to me."

With his fourth career victory, Alex Bowman joins some solid company among drivers to have raced and won in Hendrick's cars. Alex Bowman's four wins now ties Ken Schrader, Ricky Rudd, and Kyle Busch in all-time wins for the company.