Christopher Bell
2026 Season: NASCAR Cup Series
● Playoff eligibleThrough September 19, 2026 · 17 pts behind leader
Roles
- Driver, Joe Gibbs Racing
Coverage (14 articles)
Joey Logano Won the Bristol Night Race. Ryan Blaney Led 202 Laps and Finished 33rd.
Joey Logano came from fourth on the final restart for his 40th Cup Series win. Ryan Blaney, who led 202 laps, crashed out while racing Carson Hocevar for second and traded punches with him on pit road. Kyle Larson leads The Chase by one point.
Christopher Bell Ended a 33-Race Winless Streak by Winning the Southern 500.
Bell won the Cook Out Southern 500 by 1.038 seconds over Ty Gibbs, his first victory in 33 races and the end of a season with seven runner-up finishes. His crew gave away the lead on a stop after he had won the second segment, and he took it back with 12 laps to go. Ty Gibbs finished second after starting 28th.
Stewart Friesen Missed the Truck Chase by Seven Points. His Team's Only Win This Season Came From Someone Else.
Friesen finished fourth in the Truck Series regular-season finale at New Hampshire, the best result of any driver outside the playoff field, and still missed the ten-driver Chase by seven points. His team fielded two trucks this season and won a race in April. Neither the truck nor the driver made the championship.
Ty Gibbs Needed Three Years to Build the Team That Could Win Like This
Ty Gibbs won at Iowa with a two-tire call built on the No. 54 team's own data. One year after sitting 16th in points, he is second. The change is not just speed. It is a team that now knows what its driver needs.
Corey Heim Just Won the Brickyard 400. His Cup Points Total Is Still Zero.
Heim held off Christopher Bell by 0.287 seconds at Indianapolis and led more laps than anyone in the field. He is the defending Truck Series champion, declared for points in that series, and the official scoring report credits him with nothing in Cup.
Denny Hamlin Has Won Every Crown Jewel but One. It Runs Sunday.
Hamlin has seven wins across NASCAR's four biggest races and none of them is the Brickyard 400. A win Sunday makes him the fifth driver ever to complete the set.
Logano Leads 323 Laps to Win North Wilkesboro's First Cup Points Race in 30 Years
Joey Logano led 323 of 450 laps and beat Denny Hamlin by 0.859 seconds to win the Window World 450, the first NASCAR Cup Series points race at North Wilkesboro Speedway in 30 years. The win secured a playoff berth for Logano. For Kaulig Racing the night split in two: Ty Dillon finished 16th while AJ Allmendinger went out early with suspension trouble.
Ryan Blaney survives a rain-delayed Atlanta marathon to win the Quaker State 400 in overtime
Ryan Blaney led 171 of 263 laps, kept handing the lead back to the pack, and took it for good in overtime to win a rain-delayed Quaker State 400 at Atlanta's EchoPark Speedway. It was his second win of 2026, Ford's 750th in Cup, and it moved him to third in the championship.
William Byron Won Everything at Chicagoland Except the Race
William Byron swept both stages at Chicagoland and led 94 laps, more than anyone else on the grid. He finished fourth. Chase Briscoe led the final 46 laps, beat Christopher Bell by 0.276 seconds, and gave Joe Gibbs Racing a 1-2-3 in NASCAR's first Cup race at the track since 2019.
Hamlin Wins Third Straight at Pocono, Cutting Reddick's Lead to 19 Points
Denny Hamlin held off Tyler Reddick by 1.678 seconds at Pocono on Sunday for his third straight NASCAR Cup win, a record eighth at the track. The streak cut Reddick's once-100-point lead to 19, turning the championship into a contest with 10 races left to set the Chase field.
Hamlin Grabs Pocono Pole
Denny Hamlin was the last man out at Pocono and grabbed the Busch Light Pole by fifty-seven thousandths of a second, his fourth of the season. The bigger story is the streak: two straight wins, his best track in front of him, and a shot at the first three-race run of his career on Sunday.
A YouTube Star Is About to Say the Most Famous Words in Racing — Then Go Race a Truck
Cleetus McFarland, 4.75 million YouTube subscribers and a real racing résumé, is pulling double duty at Michigan on Saturday: grand marshal and driver in the No. 4 Niece Motorsports truck. John Speedway on the most fun entry of the Truck Series weekend.
Two Toyotas, One Title, and the Track Ford Refuses to Lose
Tyler Reddick and Denny Hamlin have turned 2026 into a two-Toyota title fight, and they're carrying it into Michigan International Speedway, the track Ford has won at 44 times and can't win at now. A FireKeepers Casino 400 preview from John Speedway.
Denny Hamlin Beat His Own Teammates to the Line at Nashville for Win No. 62
Denny Hamlin won the Cracker Barrel 400 at Nashville by 0.115 seconds, and the two cars he beat were his own Joe Gibbs Racing teammates, Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe, in a three-wide sweep to the line. Points leader Tyler Reddick crashed across the finish and still leads by 97.
Other coverage in the Mercury Local network
Charlotte FC Is Down the Street. The Rest of Charlotte Sports Requires a Screen.
Charlotte FC plays down the street Tuesday. The Knights are away, and two NASCAR drivers won at Iowa. Here is the Fourth Ward version of what matters.
Charlotte Sports This Week: One Home Match, One Long Road Trip and Some Awkward Math
Charlotte FC is home Tuesday, the Knights are leaving for 12 games and the weekend at Iowa rewarded two drivers who finally got the timing right. Here is the useful version for Firethorne.
Charlotte Sports, Minus the Homework: What Matters This Week
Charlotte FC has not allowed a goal, the Knights have some awkward math to explain and two NASCAR drivers left Iowa with wins. Here is the useful part.