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Former Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Christopher Bell and Kyle Busch engaged in a heated exchange following the NASCAR Cup race at COTA last week. During the race, the two made contact causing the #8 Chevy driver to spin out, which led to a confrontation in the pitlane.
Although the incident appeared to strain their relationship, the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing driver revealed that they have since moved past the incident.
In a recent interview with Fox Sports, Christopher Bell disclosed that he reached out to Kyle Busch in an attempt to reconcile. He claimed that he had a positive conversation with the two-time Cup champion and they have collectively decided to put the incident behind them.
Bell said:
"I made contact with him and he spun out. So I understand why he's upset... and we had a conversation on Monday and I thought that it went well. Actually I called him and he didn't answer. And I thought that that was gonna be the end of it [but] he called me back."
He added:
"So that was really cool that he had the respect towards me to call me back. He didn't have to do that. It's behind us and whatever happens moving forward, it is what it is."
Christopher Bell was involved in an incident with both Kyle Larson and Kyle Busch in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at COTA. Bell finished second, while Busch and Larson got the ninth and 17th positions, respectively.
Kyle Busch vows to race Christopher Bell "harder" in the upcoming races
The veteran NASCAR driver elaborated that he wanted to share his perspective on the incident, prompting him to continue the conversation with Christopher Bell the following week.
Speaking to the media at Richmond Raceway, Kyle Busch explained that he didn't fully buy into Bell's argument, suggesting that the #20 Toyota driver was too far back to make the move.
Busch told the media (via Frontstretch.com):
"I mean, just to give more of my side than what I said on pit road, and to have him give a greater understanding and to my objectives and what I’ve got going on versus what he might think that he’s got going on. Think he understood that, and then heard his side of it. Didn’t really believe much into it..."
Busch fired warning shots at the 29-year-old, by adding:
"Run him harder for a little bit until he concedes that he’s sorry on the race track and then get back to normal."
On the other hand, Christopher Bell said that he will continue to race his former KBM boss with respect.
