For Whom the (Christopher) Bell Tolls: Loudon edition.
It seems like another chapter was written in Bell’s and Joe Gibbs Racing’s book at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, as the No. 20 driver took home his fourth win at the Magic Mile.
It wasn’t a dominating performance by the Oklahoma native, but Bell certainly had one of the best cars all day. After starting the race 23rd due to a washout in qualifying Friday, Bell’s skill at Loudon shined through. He stayed in the top five for much of the race, fighting hard for one of the top spots on every restart.
In the end, Bell pushed past Cole Custer and Sheldon Creed in overtime and took home the checkered flag.
Creed was second, Custer took third, Justin Allgaier was fourth and Carson Kvapil brought home a fifth-place finish.
Winners
Just how good is JGR at New Hampshire? Well, collectively, it has 13 victories there, as well as 35 top fives and 43 top 10s, dating back all the way to 1998. There are very few events where a Gibbs driver hasn’t run well there.
It’s not just Loudon for that No. 20 car this year, though. JGR’s drivers have four wins in 2024: John Hunter Nemechek at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Aric Almirola at Martinsville Speedway, Ryan Truex at Dover Motor Speedway and then Bell at New Hampshire. Its success this year has brought it to fifth place in the owner’s points standings behind the teams of Custer, Chandler Smith, Justin Allgaier and Austin Hill.
One of JGR’s racers, Creed, is the bridesmaid of the bunch, as he earned his 10th runner-up at the Magic Mile. Three of those came this year, his first season with Gibbs. While it’s obviously frustrating for Creed, it shows that he’s still attempting to win. He’s just getting beat by others who are just a tad better than he is, or that he makes the right move at the wrong time.
A win is surely in the cards for Creed, though. I mean, Daniel Hemric had a lot of seconds before he finally found victory lane. Besides, I’d much rather have a runner-up than a 30th for not really trying or making a lot of mistakes.
Kvapil continues to impress during his time with JR Motorsports. Not only did he gain 33 positions on the track, he also led 24 laps. In four starts this year, he has three top fives, earning a best result of second at Dover. Could he be like Josh Berry and snag his first win soon? We’ll have to wait and see.
Another driver who deserves recognition is Corey Heim, who finished…
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