Following a policy shift by Joe Gibbs Racing that now allows drivers to participate in off-season dirt racing, Christopher Bell might be eyeing further flexibility from his team.
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Inspired by Kyle Larson, Bell is keen to emulate the #5 driver’s achievement of racing “The Double” — the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 — on the same day that only five drivers in motorsport history have accomplished.
This year Larson, driving the No. 17 Hendrickcars.com Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, was in contention for at least a top-10 finish before a late pit road speeding penalty scuttled his efforts.
However, a potential hurdle for Bell is Toyota’s current absence from the sport. Toyota previously competed in the IRL IndyCar Series from 2003 to 2005. Bell’s ambition to tackle ‘The Double’ might require navigating the complexities of manufacturer affiliations.
Chevrolet driven by Larson at Indy500 has had ties with the sport dating back to 1911, when Arthur Chevrolet took part in the inaugural Indianapolis 500.
While Toyota has considered engaging with IndyCar’s next-generation engine platform, no concrete plans have materialized yet. Since Bell wishes to pursue the same with Toyota, it wouldn’t be possible for him to enter the open-wheel racing series with a different engine manufacturer.
Bell remains optimistic, noting that should Toyota re-enter the IndyCar Series as an engine supplier, he would volunteer if they sought to sponsor an existing driver for a one-off race or the Indianapolis 500. Speaking ahead of the NASCAR awards event in Downtown Charlotte, he expressed his readiness to embrace such an opportunity:
“Yeah, for sure. If Toyota was interested in that, I would be raising my hand to do it. They haven’t been (just) a huge part of my career, they have been my career. They have literally taken me from childhood semi-professional or amateur racing all the way to the Cup Series so I would love that. I would love if they would do it, and I’d be the first one to raise my hand to do it.”
Since the onset of his NASCAR career, Bell has been behind the wheel of Toyota vehicles, and despite the opportunity to pilot cars from other manufacturers, he appears fully committed to sticking with Toyota. In just five years in Cup Racing, Bell has won nine races in 78 starts, underscoring his loyalty and success with the brand.
Toyota in the Motorsports Industry
Toyota’s foray into motorsport began in the closing months of 1972 when Swedish driver Ove Andersson took the wheel for the Japanese manufacturer at the RAC Rally of Great Britain.
But their first triumph on the track came three years later, in 1975, when Hannu Mikkola and his co-driver Atso Aho clinched victory at the 1000 Lakes Rally in Finland driving a Toyota Corolla.
Toyota expanded its presence into the CART IndyCar World Series from 1996 to 2002 before shifting to the IRL IndyCar Series in 2003. There, they provided substantial factory support to prominent former CART teams such as Team Penske and Target Chip Ganassi Racing, offering free engines among other benefits.
Since its motorsport debut in the early 1970s, Toyota has diversified its racing portfolio extensively to compete in a wide array of series, including NASCAR, Toyota Racing Series, Super Formula, Formula Three, Formula Drift, NHRA, USAC, Super GT, the World Rally Championship (WRC), and the World Endurance Championship (WEC).
