Joe Gibbs changed his stance on dirt racing last November. Ever since then, a buoyant mood has gripped Christopher Bell. The decorated dirt racer could not wait to get behind the wheel of a sprint car or a midget car since his last outing in 2022. And now that he is back at the Chili Bowl Nationals, Bell is having the time of his life. His resurgent happiness is visible on his face, no matter the highs or lows.

Christopher Bell bagged the O’Reilly Invitational Race of Champions on Monday in dominant fashion. Although his first Chili Bowl night went great, the third night saw a few hurdles coming his way. Despite that, Bell is simply glad to be back racing his roots like a favorite pastime.

Christopher Bell is high-spirited no matter what

The ace driver holds three Chili Bowl Nationals victories after all. Christopher Bell clinched the Super Bowl of Midget Racing consecutively for three years (2017, 2018, and 2019). His three-peat Golden Driller victorious streak left Bell yearning for more this time. Yet after winning the Race of Champions, Bell ran up against obstacles in the form of strong rivals. During the Hasty Bake Qualifying Night, Bell led for 14 laps, fending off hard charges by rivals Karter Staff, Tanner Thorson, and Ryan Bernal.

However, Thorson got past Bell by lap 25. A late race caution set up a green-white-checkered flag when Thorson blocked Christopher Bell with a slide. Eventually, Bernal overtook Bell by inches for the runner-up finish, while the latter had to settle for third place. Talking to journalist Matt Weaver, Bell outlined how he never got enough of the thrill. This place never disappoints. “You never know how it’s going to top it, and it always figures out a way…Tonight was just…I can’t get over the white flag, literally in 1 and 2…I’m second in the middle, Tater’s on the top – that’s what it’s all about.” 

Christopher Bell then highlighted why he truly was racing here. Huddling among other talents like 2022 Chili Bowl winner Tanner Thorson, winged sprint car racers Spencer Bayston and Chris Windom, 4-time USAC Sprint Car champ Brady Bacon and so many more is something Bell cherishes. So he is not here to win – he is here for the enjoyable parts. “Dude…I’m just in a different spot in life right now.” He dropped a revealing 5-word motive: “I want to have fun.” Bell continued, “I want to enjoy it, I’m having the time of my life. Drive race cars for a living, and drive race cars for fun. These things are so much fun to be a part of.”

However, Bell is amply aware of the caveats involved.

Keeping track of the challenges

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Few people herald the experience that Bell holds at the Chili Bowl. Besides his three-peat victorious streak, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver is also an 8-time preliminary feature winner. Only a select few cream racers could compete in the Race of Champions, which he won on Monday. Christopher Bell also admitted to being happier due to his past achievements. “If I was looking for my first one, I promise you, I wouldn’t be smiling.” However, it also means that Christopher Bell holds a wealth of knowledge of what goes on in the track. That would help him wade through the event’s difficulties without batting an eyelid.

Talking to Matt Weaver, Christopher Bell underlined the difficult nature of the format. He also dove into what racers need to do to succeed. “Just the format is so tough with…five prelim nights. Because now Tater…will be the difference between me possibly starting on the pole of a B feature or the second row of a B feature. So I would love to try and get back to having a three lock-in. It just makes everything a lot more square whenever you start lining up the alphabets, too. All the guys that miss it are going to be at the front of the B-feature.”

An elevated mood and golden knowledge – what more do you need for a glorious Chili Bowl attempt? Christopher Bell is drawing a lot of eyes for his possible 4th victory.