RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — NASCAR finishes have fallen into a familiar pattern for Christopher Bell.
Second-place finishes in four of the past five Cup Series races have felt like a “kick to the gut” for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver.
But those disappointments are always followed by a shot in the arm.
“Whenever Monday, Tuesday rolls around, you’re like, ‘Ahh, it was a pretty darn good day,’ ” Bell said before practice Friday at Richmond Raceway. “Ultimately, the results that we’ve gotten have meant a lot more this year than what they have in my entire Cup career.”
That’s because NASCAR has restructured its championship system this season with the return of the Chase, which emphasizes accumulating points through solid finishes.
Though in a 30-race winless streak, Bell is a lock to make the Chase and a threat to win the 10-race title run. Heading into Saturday night’s 400-lap race at Richmond, he’s ranked sixth in the points standings with seven second-place finishes (tying Harry Gant’s 1981 record for most runner-up finishes without a victory in a single season).
During NASCAR’s previous title format from 2014-25, Bell might not have been a contender. Drivers relied on wins to qualify for the playoffs and advance through four rounds to win the title, but that's all gone in the Chase.
“It’s been nice to stack some good results together, and we’re performing really well right now,” Bell said. “I certainly feel like we’re in the mix.”
He will try to maintain the momentum at Richmond despite the loss of pit selection and the ejection of car chief Chris Sherwood after Bell's car failed pre-race inspection twice Friday.
It’s been that kind of eventful season for Bell, who suffered a broken wrist in the June 7 race at Michigan International Speedway (the crash registered as the most violent in five seasons of the Next Gen car).
He drove through the injury and healed quickly, ranking among the fastest on the circuit despite coming up just short at the checkered flag. On Sunday at Iowa Speedway, he lost to teammate Ty Gibbs when the handling on his No. 20 Toyota kept fading within striking distance of the lead over the final 50 laps.
“There were a couple times that I pushed really hard to try and make up ground, but the moment that I got there, I started sliding around and would fall back again,” he said. “There wasn’t really any way for me to even move him out of the way without seriously jeopardizing both of us. If I would have tried to make any sort of contact, it was going to make my car jump sideways.”
Bell, who has a career-best second at Richmond, tries to avoid bumping drivers to gain position anyway. But he added that he won’t settle for taking the points over challenging for a win.
“The standings and where you’re at in points is super important, but the entire previous championship format was very much win or bust,” he said. “I think that mentality is still engraved in at least my mind and probably most of the industry’s mind, but in all reality, it’s not win or bust anymore. You have to have good, consistent, strong runs every single week, and that’s what we’re doing. Unfortunately, we haven’t got to victory lane, but we’ve been running really well.”
Hunting a ride
Josh Berry says he’s “racing for my career,” and the Wood Brothers Racing driver has performed under pressure lately. He is coming off a fourth place at Iowa Speedway, marking the team’s first top five on a short track since Ricky Rudd in August 2005 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Berry, who was seventh a week earlier in the Brickyard 400, has consecutive top-10 finishes for the first time this season.
Wood Brothers Racing announced two months ago that Berry will be replaced in the No. 21 Ford by Jesse Love next year, and Berry said this week he has made little progress since then on finding a job for next season.
“I can’t do much else other than just try to have days like we’ve had the last couple of weeks,” he said. “If we turn this deal around and run like we have in the top five and top 10, and nothing materializes, I kind of feel it shows more about the system than it does about me.”
Gragson gets extension
There are few places for Berry to land in the Cup Series, and another potential opening disappeared Friday.
Front Row Motorsports announced a contract extension with Noah Gragson through 2027 with options to continue beyond next year. Gragson, who is ranked 31st in the points standings with only one top 10 this season, is in his second season with the team.
Destination Down Under?
Asked about a report that he might race at the Supercars Championship season finale in Adelaide, Australia, in late November, Ty Gibbs said nothing has been finalized.
“It’d be sick to do it, though, so we’ll see what happens,” Gibbs said. “I’ve got some friends that are down there racing. I haven’t watched too many (races), though. So I don’t really get to see too much, but I think it’s sick.”
Odds and ends
Denny Hamlin, who leads active drivers with five wins at Richmond and grew up about 20 minutes from the track, is the favorite, followed by Bell, Ryan Blaney and Gibbs. … Richmond will return to the Chase next season, opening the 10-race championship run for the first time. The track was the regular-season finale from 2004-17 and in the playoffs from 2018-21.
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