Christopher Bell Draws Heat Away From Joe Gibbs With 9-Word Confession

Last Sunday, the asphalt tracks of Darlington saw Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson clinch the win and advance to the second round of the playoffs. But not all the drivers had such good fortunes for the day. One among the unfortunate ones was Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell. Despite qualifying P1, the driver ended the race outside the top 20.

Now, an eye could be blinked, the next weekend is here and the driver yet again starts with a promise. As engines sputtered to a stop in the garages of the Kansas Speedway after qualifying, the 28-year-old had a heartfelt confession to make.

The #20 team starts from the front of the grid once again

When Bell’s Toyota Camry started from pole position last weekend, he had one of the best pit crews behind him. The crew that had earlier served the #54 of team owner Joe Gibbs’ grandson Ty Gibbs had been transferred to Bell’s garage to better his chances in the playoffs. Notably, this team of technicians had won the NASCAR Pit Crew Challenge back in May, and ranked 3rd in the series, according to NBC Sports. Bell’s old crew ranked 20th in comparison.

Going in with what seemed to be a massive advantage to secure the win at Darlington, the #20 crew’s balance was completely off. Owing to a mistake by the crew and a few of his own, the driver finished the race at a lowly P23. But as of Saturday, the team has secured another shot at goal. Qualifying P1 once more, Christopher will be starting from pole position on Sunday at Kansas.

Speaking to the media after the practice, as reported by Bob Pockrass, he expressed his appreciation for the crew and said, “I am super excited to be driving for this group of or this pit crew. They’ve obviously proven themselves through the entire season and I didn’t give them a fair opportunity last week to show what they’re made of. So I am glad that we get another number 1 pit stall opportunity and I am confident that myself and the pit crew will do a much better job this week.”

With the driver taking part of the blame for last weekend on himself, some of the heat that Joe Gibbs has been facing from the racing community for the crew’s mistake should subside.

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What went wrong at Darlington for Christopher Bell and his new crew?

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Going into the first race of the playoffs, the aim for most of the drivers would’ve been to limit mistakes. Owing to the treacherous nature of the Darlington Raceway, this is an understandable sentiment. Yet, the element of surprise, good or bad, supersedes all. Bell was not exempt from that.

Despite starting from P1, the team suffered with too many green flag pit stops that ultimately sunk their positions. Recovering from an issue with the jack in his first pitstop, Christopher raced ahead only to hit the outside wall at turn 2. The hit damaged the front of his car and he was forced to stay put until caution.

The race was already out of hand by then, and the final blow came with the driver getting involved in an incident involving teammate Denny Hamlin. He finished the race at P23 and stumbled out the gates of Darlington. Speaking to the media, he said, “We have speed. We’ve had speed a lot. I know at Kansas we’ll be fast again, it’s been a really good track for Toyota. I know that we have the speed to do it, we just have to put it all together.”

The 28-year-old and his crew have shown their eagerness for the Kansas race right from the moment they failed at Darlington. Now that the Hollywood Casino 400 is here, they have set out to hunt to claim a better rank. 

Read More: “They Are Both Not in the Playoffs” – Christopher Bell Scrutinizes Chase Elliott & Alex Bowman While Addressing Ultimate Sacrifice for Joe Gibbs