“What you don’t want to happen is be on the losing side of it…and give up a bunch of points.” That is the mindset Christopher Bell espoused before running in Martinsville. He lived up to his professed goal and seemed to topple William Byron in a closely fought points battle. However, Bell mimicked Ross Chastain’s legendary ‘Hail Melon’ move that was outlawed in 2023. And that invited NASCAR’s judicial eyes of scrutiny.

For a driver who had posted top-ten finishes in all the playoff races except for Watkins Glen, this fate seemed like an absolute heartbreak. Christopher Bell was silently advancing throughout the season, paving the way toward a championship. Yet that final lap of Martinsville sealed his fate, and NASCAR explained why that happened.

NASCAR executive breaks down the rules

Two years ago, Ross Chastain pulled off a move straight out of a racing fairytale. In the final lap of the 2022 Xfinity 500, Chastain had to overtake Denny Hamlin in 4th place for a championship berth. Chastain sat in the 10th position, entering the last lap, which made this a near-impossible task. So he drove his car into Turn 3, put his foot down, and took his hands off the steering wheel. Through the screeching of metal, Chastain toppled Hamlin just before crossing the checkered flag. Hamlin, who got eliminated, was left stunned after getting beat by a video-game move. Despite the wild publicity about this ‘Hail Melon’ move, NASCAR outlawed it. The safety concern arose from the fact that a crossover gate exists on Turn 4. So after Christopher Bell mocked Chastain, officials brought down their judicial axe on him.

During a post-race press conference in Martinsville, NASCAR’s Senior VP of Competition, Elton Sawyer, explained the ban on the move. “We obviously were really good on video. As I back up on that, you go back two years ago. We had a situation with Ross here. We went to Phoenix. There was a lot of dialogue with the drivers that that’s not a move that we want to have to make on the last lap. Though we were able to get through Phoenix and had a great Championship race that year…In the all-season meet with the industry, the meet with our drivers – and to a man, that was not a move that they wanna have to make.”

According to rule 10.5.2.6.A, safety violations are “treated with the highest degree of seriousness” and “will be handled on a case-by-case basis.” Despite the vague words in the rulebook, Sawyer claimed that Christopher Bell‘s case was black and white. “There was a language in the rulebook. And when you look at it today, he clearly got up against the fence in Turns 3 and 4 and rode the fence all the way off 4 there. And that’s strictly (prohibited) to protect our drivers as well as our fans. So yeah, it’s almost pretty straightforward.” It is also worth noting that there is no written rule against wall-riding in the NASCAR rule book; it just lists wall-riding as a safety violation. This left Joe Gibbs Racing in despair, as NASCAR had informed them that they could not appeal the decision either.

Yet Christopher Bell has a horde of supporters by his side, including his topmost rival.

Byron sympathizes with Christopher Bell

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The ‘silent runner’ was forging a golden path to the championship this year. That is why NASCAR’s unexpected penalty attracted widespread criticism from fans. They even hounded Joe Gibbs for not joining the 23XI Racing-Front Row Motorsports fold against NASCAR in the lawsuit case. On top of that, Christopher Bell received words of sympathy from his rival. Officials announced the decision that William Byron would advance after 30 minutes’ review when the two drivers waited tensely. Then a visibly dejected Bell mustered the courage to offer a congratulatory hug to Byron. The latter also slipped a few words of regret for Bell’s predicament.

“I hate it for everyone involved,” Byron quipped about Christopher Bell’s situation. “I’ve never been a part of anything like this, so I don’t really know how to feel. I’m happy for this No. 24 Liberty University Chevy team. I’m happy for us moving on, and we’ll go on and focus on Phoenix.” He added, “I’ll think about this one here at Martinsville (Speedway) with my team. We had a lot of adversity through the second half of the race there. Yeah, I mean we know what the rules are, right? So it is what it is. I wouldn’t say I’m happy, but I’m excited to race for a championship, that’s for sure.”

Byron will remember the tough fight Christopher Bell put up in Martinsville. With that in mind, he will face another Toyota speedster, Tyler Reddick, in the final race.