Christopher Bell unhappy with his #20 JGR as teammate Denny Hamlin denies him an impressive victory

Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin
Christopher Bell (background image) and Denny Hamlin (inlet) - Source: Imagn

Christopher Bell couldn't capitalize on a fast car after spinning out twice at Dover Motor Speedway on Sunday. Describing his spins as a problem, Bell was forced to settle for an 18th-place finish despite having good runs for the lead.

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During the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 at Monster Mile, Bell, driver of the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, was battling Chase Elliott for the lead when he spun from the outside in turn three on lap 260. He later got back to second place, but spun again while running alongside race leader and teammate Denny Hamlin approaching the frontstretch on lap 393. Hamlin defended his lead in double OT and won.

Speaking about his on-track misfortunes, Bell, who started in third, was frustrated, saying (via SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on X):

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“I got a problem spinning out here. It's three times in the last two races that I spun out at Dover, so that's not cool.”

Despite two major incidents, the 30-year-old Oklahoma native was pleased with the performance of his #20 Toyota Camry, adding:

“But I'm just really happy with the performance in our Camry. A day like that actually feels better than some of the days we had in the past, where we squeak out finishes. But this thing's really good. I'm happy about that.”
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If it weren't for his spins, Christopher Bell could've joined his teammates on the top 10 list at Dover Motor Speedway. Hamlin (#11) won ahead of Chase Briscoe (#19), who came short of taking the lead with fresher tires on the final restart. Their other teammate, Ty Gibbs (#54), finished in fifth place.

Since debuting in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020, Bell has only scored one top-five and two top-10s at the 1.0-mile Delaware circuit. He entered last week's race following a DNF last year after getting involved in a three-way crash with Bubba Wallace and William Byron on lap 328.

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“We're just struggling to get a little bit of momentum”: Christopher Bell on #20 team after three early wins in 2025 season

After the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway two weeks ago, Christopher Bell admitted to struggling to get momentum amid a strong start to the 2025 NASCAR season. He hasn't won a race since scoring a hat-trick (Circuit of the Americas, Phoenix, and Las Vegas), which was a first in the Next-Gen car era.

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In an interview with Frontstretch, Bell, who finished fifth at Sonoma, said:

“We probably could have easily ran second where the #19 (Chase Briscoe) did if we executed the day a little bit better. We're just struggling to get a little bit of momentum right now. It's just being really sloppy on all accounts.” [1:26]
“And yeah, to walk out here with a fifth place finish hopefully gives us a little bit of momentum and we can keep it going, build on it,” the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing driver added.
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As of posting, Christopher Bell has amassed three wins, eight top-fives, and 12 top-10s, enough to rank sixth in the standings. He is 28 points short of teammate Denny Hamlin, who ranks fourth with four wins.

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Edited by Tushar Bahl
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