Why Jeff Gordon Does Not Feel Sorry for Christopher Bell After Martinsville Heartbreak?

In his seventh season with Hendrick Motorsports, William Byron has secured his spot in Championship 4 for the second time after Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell was thrown out of contention for riding the wall to the finish line.

During the final lap of the Xfinity 500 race, Bell moved closer to the wall to pass Wallace, a strategy that briefly thrust him into the final four as shown by the live leaderboard. However, the subsequent decision by NASCAR imposed a penalty on the #20 driver for his last-lap maneuver, demoting him to 22nd place.

The incident echoed the notorious “Hail Melon” stunt by Ross Chastain at Martinsville in 2022, where he also used the wall to clinch his place in the Championship 4.

Jeff Gordon shared his views on the decision, expressing mixed feelings. “It’s disappointing and it’s controversial and you don’t want to see it come down like that. But at the same time, you want to see your team go have a shot at the championship and so that was up to NASCAR to make that decision they did, and now we all eyes forward on going in place for championship.”

Gordon described his feelings as bittersweet, happy to see the #24 advance but reluctant to be embroiled in controversy. He explained:

“I think we were all kind of in disbelief. But the only thing… and I guess that’s the way NASCAR looked at it too, is that they made a rule against riding the wall like that if it’s going to advance positions or prevent you from losing positions, and that’s what did happen.”

Byron will enter Phoenix with an average finish of 11.8, including one win, two top-5s, and seven top-10s across 13 starts.

Joe Gibbs offered his perspective on NASCAR’s controversial decision to penalize Bell

Upon hearing that Bell would be penalized and placed in the 22nd position, Joe Gibbs responded, “They said it’s over,” and conceded that they are “still dealing with it.” When asked if an appeal was on the cards, Gibbs expressed his frustration, noting, “I’d love to. They said we can’t appeal.”

The decision was a tough pill to swallow for Joe Gibbs Racing, especially since none of their drivers, including Denny Hamlin, made it to the final four. A look at the numbers between Byron and Bell suggests that the #20 might have deserved the spot.

While both drivers clinched three race wins this season, Bell finished in the top-5 fourteen times, compared to Byron’s twelve. Additionally, Bell led a whopping 1002 laps over the season, significantly more than Byron’s 338.

Despite his disappointments, Bell showed admirable sportsmanship. He approached Byron, congratulated the HMS driver, and graciously said, “It’s not how I wanted it to go, but congratulations. Go get them next week.”