In what was shaping up to be a race dominated by the Toyota camp at Texas Motor Speedway, Chase Elliott delivered the bowtie a second straight win following Carson Hocevar's first NASCAR Cup Series triumph at Talladega Superspeedway.
Elliott took charge at the end of stage two and only lost the lead during the final green-flag pit cycle as he went on to win his second race at Texas and his second of the 2026 season, marking the earliest he has ever won twice at any point in his career.
While Elliott left the Lone Star State elated, the drivers of the four Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas could not say the same. Denny Hamlin ultimately finished runner-up, but mistakes and on-track issues hampered Chase Briscoe and eliminated Ty Gibbs and Christopher Bell from the race entirely.
For Bell, specifically, it was more of the same during what has been a miserable stretch to begin the 2026 season. Coming off a career-high four wins in 2025, the Norman, Oklahoma native currently sits 12th in the standings, up from 13th following the Ryan Preece penalty that was announced on Tuesday, and he is mired in an uncharacteristic four-race stretch of finishing 17th or worse.
Christopher Bell is beyond due for a turnaround
For most drivers of Bell's caliber, those subpar results would raise some eyebrows and be a major cause for concern. However, when you really dive into how well he has run prior to experiencing those issues, there is reason to believe it is only a matter of time until everything finally goes his way.
Bristol Motor Speedway initially appeared to be the ideal location for Bell to overcome his quiet start to the season up to that point. After all, he had four top seven finishes in five races going into that race. But Thunder Valley did not play kindly to Bell this time around.
Bell incurred a speeding penalty after running toward the front and subsequently broke his toe link after brushing the turn four wall. That 27th place finish was quickly followed by a 20th at Kansas Speedway after he received contact from Tyler Reddick and hit the wall while battling for the lead on the overtime restart.
Fast forward to Talladega, where Bell was contending for a top five finish, only to be involved in the tri-oval crash coming to the checkered flag and finish 17th. Then there was Sunday was race at Texas, one that appeared to be Bell's best chance at earning the long-awaited win that he has been so close to.
In a matter of seconds, Bell went from battling teammate Hamlin for the lead to getting clipped by the spinning lapped car of Todd Gilliland in turn four, resulting in race-ending damage from outside wall contact before stage one had even concluded. That last place DNF was just the latest disappointing outcome for a driver who has had more than enough speed to have multiple wins at this point.
The key to all of this is the speed in Bell's No. 20 Toyota. It is not like he has been running poorly and missing the setup each week. Bell's 325 laps led trail only Kyle Larson's 499 and Hamlin's 624, so the performance is clearly there, despite the slow start.
The upcoming schedule also looks favorable for Bell as he tries to establish some momentum and climb out of his early points deficit. He has four top 10 finishes in five career Watkins Glen International starts, including a runner-up finish behind Shane van Gisbergen nine months ago. He also has one win and four total top 10 finishes in seven starts at Charlotte Motor Speedway and has finished inside the top 10 in all but one of his five starts at Nashville Superspeedway.
The writing is on the wall for Bell to finally convert his speed into wins this season and join his JGR teammates Hamlin (Las Vegas Motor Speedway) and Gibbs (Bristol) as a race winner in 2026. There is every reason to believe that he is as close to that happening as anyone who has endured a miserable stretch can possibly be.
All that is left to do is to put the No. 20 car back in victory lane. After all, Bell won three of the first four races in 2025, so it would not be out of the question if a similar hot streak is in his future once again.
Add us as a preferred source on Google