Bell Gets Blunt About Cup Goals & Phoenix Option Tire

Christopher Bell (Gavin Baker/Nigel Kinrade Photography)

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Christopher Bell has asserted himself as the best driver in the NASCAR Cup Series to kick off the 2025 season, and there are no signs of him slowing down.

Even though the year is just three races old, the driver for Joe Gibbs Racing has big ambitions for his sixth full-time campaign, starting with making a run at winning three consecutive races.

He’s got a legitimate shot at checking that box, too.

“There's a couple guys that can win on any given day, and I think I'm one of those people,” Bell said.

The 30-year-old from Norman, Okla., makes a convincing – and now proven – statement.

Not only does he enter the Shriners Children’s 500 at Phoenix Raceway riding back-to-back wins at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway and Circuit of the Americas, but he was also two laps away from winning the Daytona 500 before getting wiped out in a late-race wreck.

Bell’s scorching-hot start comes months removed from a ridiculously successful postseason run last fall, where he earned six top-five and eight top-10 finishes, including a pair of runner-ups.

It was a run that was overlooked by most – because of his exemption from the Championship 4 due to a controversial penalty in the semi-final race – but even then, the driver of the No. 20 was adamant that he and the team had yet to reach their “ceiling.”

That was hard to fathom during such a dominant stretch, but Bell is now displaying just how much farther that metaphorical ceiling could extend, and just what it could look like from his viewpoint.

”It's just refreshing to be able to get in the win column,” Bell said. “I feel like our performance last year, we performed up to our ceiling, but we just weren't getting the results that to go with it. This year, we've gotten the results.

“I know that we're capable of having the kind of great seasons that we’ve seen from William (Byron) and (Kyle) Larson … even going back to the old car, seeing the ‘big three.’ I think we're every bit as capable as they were back then,” he added. “I’m content with where we’re at right now.”

Claims of becoming one of the next “big three” drivers is bold, but it’s one Bell can certainly back up with his current trajectory in the Cup Series and history in the sport.

In addition to winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship in 2017, he went on to collect 15 NASCAR Xfinity Series victories over the ensuing two years. At the top level, he’s now had four consecutive multi-win seasons, making the Championship 4 twice during that span.

As mentioned by Bell, his biggest struggle since moving into the Cup Series was being dominant, but not being able to put it all together to seal the deal.

It’s become apparent now that the No. 20 team has found its groove, something the Toyota Racing Development driver attributes to their early success this year.

Christopher Bell celebrates in victory lane at Atlanta Motor Speedway. (HHP/Jacy Norgaard photo)

“ I think it's the chemistry of the team and just having everyone together for a number of years now,” Bell said of why things are working. “The longer that you’re together, the better that you’re just able to work together. My engineers, my crew chief, my pit crew … everybody’s jiving right now and we haven’t even been to an oval yet.

“I’m really looking forward to this next stretch of races to see how we can do.”

Bell’s quest to retain his status as the best in the series continues with the sport’s first of two trips to Phoenix. The 30-year-old has a chance – and a great one at that – to become the first driver since Larson in 2021 to win three consecutive races at the Cup level.

Last March, he scored his first win in Arizona, then placed fifth with more than 140 laps led when NASCAR’s premier level returned to the one-mile desert oval for the finale.

“To me, Phoenix is one of the best tracks on the schedule, because it rewards the best drivers and the best teams,” Bell admitted. “Yeah, I mean, the cars are going to get spread out, but we’re not pack racing. What we’re doing is we’re not handicapping the leader. The best cars, best teams, the best drivers show up at Phoenix.

“We saw it with Kevin Harvick (at Phoenix). He had 20-straight top 10 finishes, and the way that that happens is by having traditional automobile racing, where the best teams and the best drivers shine. That's what I love about Phoenix.”

While there’s no denying Bell’s status as the best-in-series and his prowess at Phoenix, earning his third-straight victory will be easier said than done.

NASCAR and Goodyear brought an “option” tire to the one-mile facility, adding another element of strategy to what’s already one of the most challenging tracks on the circuit.

The softer tire is designed to provide increased grip and tire fall-off, while also promoting more passing throughout the field.

Teams got a taste of two different tire compounds in a competitive setting last season at Richmond (Va.) Raceway, where Bell finished sixth after leading 122 laps. It’s something that, despite mastering some of the strategy nuances, Bell wishes hadn’t come to Phoenix.

“I personally am not a fan of the option tire, because it adds a gimmick to the race and allows non-competitive cars to otherwise be competitive off of a different strategy,” Bell said. “So, I don’t like it for that reason. NASCAR has made it very clear why they put the option tire in place, and that is to try and get more aggressive on the compound of the rubber and to basically use it as a test session to see how soft they can get the tire to be.

“I understand that aspect of it, but I’m thankful that we don't have the option tire whenever it comes time to crown a champion.”

Bell will attempt to become the first driver in the Next-Gen era to win three consecutive races Sunday, rolling off 11th at Phoenix Raceway.

The Shriners Children’s 500 airs live at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.