After his fourth runner-up finish of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season at Chicagoland Speedway in early July, Joe Gibbs Racing's Christopher Bell remarked that maybe he was just a second-place driver at the moment.
Little did he know.
That runner-up finish would not only be his fourth of the season, but the first of four over the next five races, including in each of the two most recent events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Iowa Speedway.
The driver of the No. 20 Toyota has had winning pace on several occasions throughout the year; even by early spring, he led more laps than he did throughout his entire four-win 2025 campaign. Yet for one reason or another, he still hasn't made a trip to victory lane for nearly 11 months.
And the Iowa runner-up finish, by just a fraction of a second behind teammate Ty Gibbs, was particularly notable.
Christopher Bell inching toward the wrong kind of NASCAR Cup Series history
For one, it was notably for a good reason: he moved up to sixth place in the point standings from 10th, which is the equivalent of 20 bonus points when it comes to the playoff reset. He can still realistically climb to as high as fifth, which he's just four points behind.
But on the flip side, Bell's seven runner-up finishes are now tied for the most in a season without a victory since Harry Gant's seven runner-up finishes during the 1981 season.
USA Network aired a graphic during the race that said Kyle Larson recorded eight runner-up finishes during his winless 2018 season. That graphic was incorrect; Larson placed second on six occasions that year, tying him with Terry Labonte in 1982.
There are notably still 13 races remaining on the 2026 schedule, but there were also only 31 races on the 1981 schedule. Additionally, Gant raced for five different teams that yet, en route to a third place finish in the championship standings. He had also never won a race in his career by that point, whereas Bell is a 13-time winner. Gant ultimately finished second 10 times before getting his first win, although it's James Hylton who holds the record with 12.
So if Bell doesn't win a race the rest of the year, he will have at least matched Gant's brutal record. At some point, you'd have to think the speed will finally translate to a victory, but if it doesn't, the question will then become whether or not he finishes second again, as he's done in nearly one-third of the races contested so far this season.
Race number 24 on the schedule is scheduled to take place at Richmond Raceway on Saturday, August 15. Live coverage of the Cook Out 400 is set to be provided by USA Network starting at 7:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and catch all of the action!
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