“It’s not easy”: Christopher Bell’s crew chief weighs in on JGR’s chances of repeating its 2019 milestone NASCAR achievement

With just two races until NASCAR crowns the 2025 Cup Series champion, Christopher Bell has a shot at repeating history. If he wins this coming Sunday’s playoff race at Martinsville, he will directly make the Championship 4. It will result in Joe Gibbs Racing having three cars in the coveted race for first time since 2019.

To this day, Joe Gibbs Racing remains the only four-car organization to have had three cars in the Championship 4. There is a chance that Bell will do it again after six years, as he holds a 37-point lead above the cutoff line. Just recently, Kelly Crandall, a veteran NASCAR journalist and reporter, spoke with Bell’s crew chief, Adam Stevens, about this.

Stevens, who has been working together with Bell for five years now, thinks that it would be great from a company standpoint. But it’s not easy given the nature of the current playoff format.

“That's tough to do; it's tough to get one in there. We already have two, and hopefully we can claw our way in there as well,” Stevens told Crandall. “But this playoff format is so tough. There are many opportunities for things not to go your way, as we've seen with the #9 this round and with Talladega in general for a few cars.”

“To navigate that, run that gauntlet, and come out on the other side is tough,” he continued. “It takes a lot of well-prepared cars for one, it takes a lot of execution on the team's side, and it takes a lot of fortitude... It's not easy; it's fun to do, but it's tough.”

At this point, it’s William Byron, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, and Chase Elliott below the cutline. Four drivers are to be eliminated after the upcoming event at Martinsville.

Notably, Christopher Bell has won before at Martinsville and logged a runner-up finish there earlier this season. In total, he has 11 starts at the Virginia short track. Nine of them were with Joe Gibbs Racing.

“That guy is tenacious”- JGR competition director on Christopher Bell’s chances at a Martinsville sweep

Currently, Christopher Bell is ranked third in the NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings. He has an 81.5 percent chance to advance out of the Round of 8.

JGR competition director Chris Gabehart reflected on Bell’s chances of making the Championship 4 through a recent statement (as quoted by NASCAR.com),

“Martinsville was a fantastic track for us in the spring,” Gabehart said. “Christopher Bell has won at Martinsville, he’s won a cut-off race at Martinsville, and he’s Christopher Bell. I don’t need to say any more than that. That guy is tenacious, and (we) look forward to making it three JGR cars in the final at Phoenix.”

The final race of the season, i.e., the Championship 4, will be held at Phoenix Raceway on November 2. For now, all eyes are on the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway, which is scheduled for Sunday, October 26. Fans can watch the 500-lap event on Peacock (2 pm ET onwards) or listen to its live radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.