Despite NASCAR announcing before the 2026 season began that full-time Cup Series drivers would not be eligible to compete in the Craftsman Truck Series or O'Reilly Auto Parts Series regular season finales, that restriction was lifted in the Truck Series.
As a result, three full-time Cup drivers ran the Truck Series regular season finale at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
One of those drivers was Christopher Bell, whose start with Halmar Friesen Racing behind the wheel of the No. 62 Toyota only came about since he was unable to compete in the Truck Series race at Richmond Raceway the week beforehand because it was postponed.
Christopher Bell replacement confirmed for Bristol
Bell ran a total of six races during the Truck Series regular season, which was actually two shy of the new limit of eight races for full-time Cup drivers with at least three years of Cup experience. He earned his first Truck Series win since he won at New Hampshire during his 2017 championship-winning season, and he did it at Bristol Motor Speedway back in April.
But this weekend's race at Bristol is the first of seven races on the Truck Series playoff schedule, so Bell is ineligible to compete.
However, full-time O'Reilly Series drivers are not prohibited from competing in Truck Series playoff races, and as a result, it's William Sawalich who is set to replace Bell in the No. 62 Halmar Friesen Racing truck this week.
Sawalich competes full-time for Joe Gibbs Racing in the O'Reilly Series, but he fell just shy of qualifying for the postseason. He has run five Truck Series races this year, but all for Tricon Garage, where he also competed part-time from 2023 to 2025. He has never run a Truck Series race for a team other than Tricon Garage.
Sawalich's career-high Truck Series finish is his sixth place effort at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in 2023. He has placed 10th twice this year, first at Darlington Raceway in March and then at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. He has not competed in the series at Bristol since 2024, when he finished the two Bristol races in 21st and 11th, respectively.
He notably took pole for the O'Reilly Series race at Bristol back in April before going on to finish seventh.
Live coverage of the UNOH 250 is set to be provided by Fox Sports 1 from Bristol Motor Speedway starting at 8:00 p.m. ET this Thursday, September 17. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss any of the action from the "Last Great Colosseum" this weekend!
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