Christopher Bell’s “action before words” approach has finally paid off with a dominant victory at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday. Starting 13th, he accomplished the triumphant feat, claiming the Stage 2 victory, and leading 50 laps at the 1-mile racetrack in Arizona. However, he feels things might not be easy in the Championship race. And here’s why.
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NASCAR revamped its aerodynamic package on road courses and short tracks of a mile or less with the hope of creating more opportunities for passing, owing to the thicker tire treads. Unfortunately for that reason, several teams, including Hendrick Motorsports, had issues finding balance and, according to Bell, “clearly missed it this week”.
However, the Toyota driver felt like it wouldn’t be the case in November. During a post-race interview, he said, “They’re not going to miss it November whenever a championship is on the line and they’ve had however many races to get their setup dialed in.” The #20 driver explained that everyone would have enough time to develop the new package before the championship race and therefore, the fierceness of the battle would increase tenfold.
“The field is going to be tighter and I would expect the favorites are going to be upfront whenever we come back in November,” he added.
Christopher Bell’s victory as a balm to the wound
Christopher Bell and team JGR have been through several heartbreaks in the desert.
Two years ago, coach Joe Gibbs’ son, Coy Gibbs, faced an untimely and unexpected death in Phoenix. He was found dead in his hotel room hours after Ty Gibbs had won the 2022 Xfinity Series championship.
Fast forward to last year’s event, a blown brake rotor shattered Bell’s hopes of winning his first NASCAR Cup Series championship in the Valley of the Sun. His victory was indeed, an emotional one.
“This one feels really good,” Bell exclaimed. “You don’t get cars like that very often, as you know. Just super, super proud to be on this 20 car.” On that very note, crew chief Adam Stevens called the victory “a little bit cathartic.” And with that, Bell clinched a spot in the playoffs. Perhaps the win is not enough to erase the bitter wounds, but surely it’s a step in the path of healing them.
