Christopher Bell quickly moved past what he called a disappointing race last Sunday. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver lost to Joey Logano in Las Vegas, even though he was the leader for a race-high 156 laps.
Logano managed to win by saving fuel, which allowed him to take the lead after Bell had to pit for gas. This victory made Logano the first driver secured for the winner-take-all championship finale next month in Arizona.
“I’d have to say (on) Monday night, I closed the book and moved on,” Bell said. “There’s a lot worse positions to be in and you know, obviously, once that disappointment wore off, you realize we’re running really well, had a great day at Las Vegas and we’re trying to carry the momentum over to Homestead.”
Bell qualified for the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway last year, and this Sunday, he aims to shake off the disappointment from last weekend and do it again.
He is the most recent winner at two of the next three race tracks — at Homestead in 2023 and in Phoenix back in March — but he knows that past success doesn’t guarantee victory.
“You have a good feeling you’re going to be competitive because the track hasn’t changed, the cars haven’t changed, the rules package hasn’t changed,” Bell said. “So, ‘you’ll be in the hunt’ is a good way to look at it. But the results of the previous race don’t guarantee anything.”
This summer, Bell proved he could really compete for the championship after he won in New Hampshire, marking his third victory for Joe Gibbs Racing. Bell has won multiple races in each of the last three seasons and is a key reason why Gibbs has led 996 laps since June 30, with Bell leading 548 of those laps.
As he heads into Sunday’s race, Bell is above the cutline, along with Kyle Larson and William Byron from Hendrick Motorsports.
Bell mentioned that the plan for the next two races before the championship is to focus on earning the most points. After Sunday’s race in Homestead, the next round will take place at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia, followed by the finale in Phoenix.
“You’re never really safe,” Bell said. “The three of us, William, Kyle and myself have kind of, the way that the cards fell, we’re kind of essentially point racing each other. … It’s going to be a battle all the way until the checkered flag at Martinsville and, you know, everybody knows how important those wins are.”
