NASCAR: Christopher Bell could be in a bind when it comes to the Cup Series

Christopher Bell is arguably the most talented driver in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, yet he could be in a bind when it comes to landing a full-time Cup Series ride.

First off, to address the elephant in the room, saying that Christopher Bell is arguably the most talented driver in the NASCAR Xfinity Series may actually be an understatement.

The driver who set a new rookie record by winning seven of the 33 races on last year’s Xfinity Series and earned another victory in the 2019 season’s second race is the most talented driver in the Xfinity Series. There is really no argument about it.

In fact, there is a case to be made for the 2017 Truck Series champion as being talented than many of the 33 drivers who compete full-time in the Cup Series as well.

Yet at 24 years old, the Norman, Oklahoma native is older than several full-time Cup Series drivers and is still competing in the Xfinity Series on a full-time basis as the driver of the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

And right now, the prospect of Bell landing a ride with Joe Gibbs Racing in the Cup Series does not look good when it comes to the near future.

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Joe Gibbs Racing’s four drivers in the Cup Series are Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Erik Jones. Hamlin has a contract to continue driving the #11 Toyota through the 2020 season with FedEx as his sponsor, and Busch just signed a new multi-year contract extension to continue driving the #18 Toyota with Mars, Incorporated as his sponsor.

The 2019 season is Truex Jr.’s first season driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, and he has Auto Owners Insurance and Bass Pro Shops locked in on multi-year contracts as the co-primary sponsors of his #19 Toyota.

Jones’s future appears to be the least certain among the futures of the team’s four drivers, but he is only 22 years old and loaded with potential, so the odds that he will be cut by Joe Gibbs Racing after the 2019 season ends are slim.

The 2015 Truck Series champion opened up the 2019 season with finishes of third, seventh and 13th place in the races at Daytona International Speedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway, respectively, in his #20 Toyota coming off of a 2018 season, which was his first season driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, that resulted in him earning the first victory and the first playoff berth of his Cup Series career.

Meanwhile, Leavine Family Racing formed a technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing before the 2019 season, but considering the fact that their driver, Matt DiBenedetto, has not finished higher than 21st place in any of the season’s first three races, it is hard to imagine Bell giving up a competitive ride in the Xfinity Series to drive the #95 Toyota for the team as DiBenedetto’s replacement or the #59 Toyota as their second driver.

Much like the case was this season as far as the Joe Gibbs Racing Cup Series team is concerned, Bell could simply end up with nowhere to go for the 2020 season.

We are already at the point where the earliest age at which Bell, whose birthday is on December 16, could compete on a full-time basis in the Cup Series is 25 years old. He is clearly in a bind when it comes to landing a full-time Cup Series ride already, and if he doesn’t land a ride for the 2020 season, that 25 would become a 26.

This could prompt Bell to leave Toyota, which is something that he admittedly doesn’t want to do given his history with the manufacturer, but it is something that he would have to at least consider, especially considering the fact that he hasn’t officially ruled out and likely won’t.

Here is what Bell had to say about his relationship with Toyota this past August when discussing the possibility of competing in the Cup Series in the 2019 season, according to NASCAR.

"“Toyota was the one that really ‑‑ they’re the reason why I’m here. I would love to stay with them, and hopefully it works out in the future. The biggest thing is I’ve learned throughout my years, and especially in NASCAR, is you are only as good as the race car that you sit in. Right now I’m at the best organization that I can be at, so I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else, honestly.”"

But Bell also stated back in August that he did not feel as though he needed another season of competing in the Xfinity Series before being promoted to the Cup Series (and hardly anyone, if anyone at all, disagrees with him), and yet that is what he is now doing. Here is what he had to say about the matter, according to NASCAR.

"“But as far as what I need, honestly I don’t feel like I need another year of Xfinity. I think the best way for me to win at the Cup level is to get there and start trying at it.”"

This situation could and likely will get even more interesting than it already is.

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Will Christopher Bell land a ride with Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series? If so, when will he do so? If not, when will he be promoted to the Cup Series, and for which team will he drive once he gets there? Expect to know the answers to at least some of these questions within the next several months.

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