TULSA, Okla. — Christopher Bell continues to impress in his first week as a car owner at the Chili Bowl Nationals, securing his place in the championship race on Saturday after a dramatic preliminary feature win Thursday night at the SageNet Center. Bell’s strong performance included winning the O’Reilly Auto Parts Race of Champions earlier in the week and a relentless charge from eighth place to first in the preliminary 30-lap event, proving why he remains a top contender at this event.
Unfolding of Thursday’s Preliminary Night Battle
The three-time Chili Bowl winner remained undefeated on Thursday, capturing victories in his heat race, qualifier, and the feature event. Despite starting from the pole in his heat and second in the qualifier, Bell faced a tougher challenge in the preliminary feature, where he began in eighth position. For much of the race, he was trailing leaders including C.J. Leary, Ryan Bernal, and Spencer Bayston while running as far back as fifth.
Bell described the difficulty of gaining ground before the race’s late cautions gave him a chance.
“I didn’t think I was going to get there,”
Bell admitted.
“When the yellow came out, I don’t know how far away those guys were, but I just didn’t really have the pace. Everyone was really committed to the top, and I really wasn’t able to keep up.”
His outlook changed after the first caution waved with seven laps remaining, which helped close the gap to the leaders and set up his late-race surge.
The Final Laps: Strategic Moves Lead to Victory
Following the restart, Bell quickly moved into third place but faced another caution only five laps from the finish. At that point, he was positioned closely behind Bernal and Leary and saw a real opportunity to challenge for the lead. Bell first overtook Leary, who was competing for NASCAR Cup Series driver Alex Bowman, then made his decisive move against Bernal on lap 28 by driving low through Turn 1 to take control of the race.
Bell, a native of nearby Norman, Oklahoma, held onto the lead through to the checkered flag, clinching his ticket to his 11th Chili Bowl Nationals championship feature. Leary’s second-place finish ensured two cars representing Bowman are locked into the Saturday finale.
Reflecting on his strategy, Bell said,
“When the yellow came out, I was like, ‘OK, I’m just going to have to do something different here.’ I could make a couple good corners on the bottom whenever I hit it, so I just said I’m going see what happens. The curb got so treacherous that nobody could get off of (Turn) 4 really well on the top, and there was enough juice on the bottom where I could get by and make a lot of speed down the frontstretch.”
Bell’s Confidence and Challenges Moving Forward
Despite winning every event he has entered this week, Bell remains cautious about his chances of winning his fourth Golden Driller trophy at the Chili Bowl. While he praises the raw speed of his car, he feels the vehicle still needs to be more consistent for race day.
He explained,
“The car is insanely fast. Like it is just really, really fast. Every time I hit the track it’s got great pace. I just am struggling with being consistent enough. I don’t think it’s good enough to win on Saturday. I’ve just got to make the car a little more drivable.”
Bell added,
“It clearly has the speed. If I can get to driving it a little more consistent, we’ll be right there.”
Looking Ahead: Championship Day Approaches
The 40th running of the Chili Bowl Nationals, sponsored by NOS Energy Drink, continues Friday evening with preliminary rounds beginning at 5 p.m. ET, streamed live on FloRacing. Christopher Bell’s strong qualifying performances and his resilience during Thursday’s feature position him as a major threat in the championship race on Saturday, where he will aim to add another Golden Driller trophy to his record. The challenges with car consistency suggest his team will focus on fine-tuning performance overnight as tension builds ahead of the finale.
