HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) — It didn't take long for Christopher Bell to move on from what he called a disappointing race last Sunday. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver lost to Joey Logano in Las Vegas last weekend despite dominating the race.
Bell led a race-high 156 laps but was beaten by Logano, who stretched his fuel mileage to snatch the win after Bell had to pit for gas. The victory for Logano made him the first driver locked into the winner-take-all championship finale next month in Arizona. “I’d have to say (on) Monday night, I closed the book and moved on,” Bell said.
"There’s a lot worse positions to be in and you know, obviously, once that disappointment wore off, you realize we’re running really well, had a great day at Las Vegas and we’re trying to carry the momentum over to Homestead.” Bell earned his ticket to the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway last year , and on Sunday he will look to shake off the sting of last weekend and do it again. He's the most recent winner at two of the next three race tracks — in Homestead in 2023 and in Phoenix back in March — but he knows that's no guarantee of success.
“You have a good feeling you’re going to be competitive because the track hasn’t changed, the cars haven’t changed, the rules package hasn’t changed,” Bell said. "So, ‘you’ll be in the hunt’ is a good way to look at it. But the results of the previous race don’t guarantee anything.
” This summer, Bell emerged as a legitimate contender.
