Bell Becomes 14th Winner of 2022 at New Hampshire

Photo Credit to James Gilbert/Getty Images for NASCAR

NASCAR

Christopher Bell Takes Second Career Win at Loudon, Locks in 14th Playoff Berth

LOUDON, N.H. – After losing this race in heartbreaking fashion a year ago, Christopher Bell is victorious at New Hampshire. Driver 20 did not take the lead until inside the final 50 laps, coming in clutch over Chase Elliott. Bell’s second Cup Series triumph comes at a pivotal time, locking him into the Playoffs as the 14th different winner.

While Joe Gibbs Racing was ultimately in victory lane, much of the day seemed like another Toyota would win. Starting from pole, Martin Truex Jr. led all but 25 laps across the opening two Stages. These marks Truex’s sixth and seventh Stage wins of the year, a series-high mark. After having to fight through some traffic to start Stage 3, Truex’s 19 was seemingly on rails to a very dominant win.

A caution just inside of the final 100 laps though would turn this race’s running order on its head. As most of the leaders chose to pit, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano, and Cole Custer all stayed out for track position. This yellow set the three best cars back, as Truex, Kevin Harvick, and Chase Elliott now had to rally forward to regain lost ground.

Busch’s 45 Toyota would hold the lead for 40 laps, until Elliott finally caught and muscled him out of the way. Not far behind Elliott’s 9 though was the 20 of Christopher Bell, running the fastest laps of anyone during this stint.

Going for his third win in four weeks, Elliott could only hold off Bell for 13 laps. The 20 finally made the winning pass with 42 laps to go, and left Elliott in the dust. At the checkered flag, Elliott trailed Bell by over five seconds.

“Man that one was much-needed right there,” Bell said post-race. “I’ll tell you what, that was a hell of a race from my viewpoint. That was so much fun, racing with the 45, 22, and the 9. We were all running different lines, that was a blast. Just so happy to be here at Joe Gibbs Racing, all of the partners on this No. 20 car. Good to get Rheem back in victory lane.”

“Winning Cup races is hard, you guys are awesome, thank you for coming out,” Bell said to the New Hampshire fans. “It just seems like we’ve been so close, and then we’ve fallen off a little bit last week. I was talking to my best friend and I told them ‘earlier in the year, I felt like we were right on the verge of winning. Then the last couple weeks, I felt like we were pretty far away.’ But here we are today.”

Christopher Bell becomes the 14th driver to win a Cup race in 2022. 14 winners through 20 races ties a record only previously seen in 1950, 2002, 2003, and 2011. With six regular season races left, only two Playoff spots remain up for grabs.

Bell also breaks a 53-race losing drought that dated back to his maiden victory in race two of 2021. Bell’s first Cup win came on the Daytona Road Course, but he was close to the New Hampshire win last year as well. This win also marks the 198th victory for Joe Gibbs Racing, as they near the 200-win mark.

Behind Bell, top finishers included Chase Elliott, Bubba Wallace, Martin Truex Jr, Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Ross Chastain, Daniel Suarez, and Kurt Busch. Elliott now has four-straight top-two finishes, while Wallace has his best result since the Daytona 500.

The race to the Playoffs roars on next week, with the M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 from Pocono Raceway. Coverage begins Sunday at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA Network, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. Two past Pocono winners are the last two currently in the Playoffs, can either Ryan Blaney or Martin Truex Jr secure their fate with another tricky triangle win?

Written by Peter Stratta

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Photo Credit to James Gilbert/Getty Images for NASCAR