Christopher Bell may have began the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season with a “checkers-or-wreckers” mentality, but over the last five races, the No. 20 team has demonstrated that it could be poised for a third consecutive Championship 4.
After finishing ninth in Sonoma on Sunday, Bell is fourth in the NASCAR playoff standings and ninth in the regular-season standings with ten races remaining.
Bell has travelled a roundabout path to his stable position.
The 29-year-old driver dominated at Phoenix on March 10, leading 50 laps on his way to victory, but he failed to maintain consistency through the first 11 races of the season.
After finishing third in the Daytona 500, two consecutive sub-30th-place results dropped him to 21st in points. His Phoenix victory sparked a run of four consecutive top-10 results, which was followed by four consecutive finishes of 17th or below.
Kansas, on May 5, however, proved to be a watershed moment for Bell and the No. 20 squad.
In a historic race, Bell took the pole, led five laps, and finished sixth, his best finish since March 31 in Richmond. While Darlington saw a relatively modest effort — Bell qualified 12th and finished 13th — a calm, solid day was undoubtedly appreciated by a team seeking stability.
Two weeks later, at Charlotte, Bell won the Coca-Cola 600, which was curtailed by rain, leading 90 laps and earning 67 of 70 points.
One week later, at St. Louis, Bell appeared to be the favourite to win, leading 80 laps and sweeping the stages after qualifying fourth. Only a late engine trouble prevented Bell from fighting head-to-head with Ryan Blaney in the final laps, but his underpowered engine still managed to finish seventh.
At Sonoma, Bell had another strong weekend, qualifying 15th and finishing ninth in a race in which all three of his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates finished no higher than 27th.
Bell has nine top-10 finishes in the Cup Series’ first 16 races, tying him for second place with Hendrick Motorsports drivers William Byron and Alex Bowman.
For a No. 20 team with experience making runs to the NASCAR championship race, finding consistent performance and results is critical for creating momentum as the summer progresses.
Bell has also accumulated nine critical playoff points over the last three races, and with four top-10 results in the last five weeks, he has finally turned the corner on a season that has left everyone in the garage perplexed.
A couple top-10 finishes in the middle of the summer do not ensure the No. 20 team a third straight championship race appearance, but they serve as a reminder to the Cup Series field of why Bell has made the championship race twice in a row.
Almost every week, Bell and his team can win.
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