Christopher Bell’s quest for a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 ended at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, falling short by a narrow seven-point margin after an intense race day. The Christopher Bell NASCAR playoffs outcome was determined by pivotal on-track battles and a series of misfortunes that also affected several key contenders.
Bell Finishes Seventh Despite Strong Start at Martinsville
After parking his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota at the front of pit road, Christopher Bell emerged visibly disappointed, his determination undiminished despite a hard-fought seventh-place finish. Bell was the only Toyota driver to break into the top 10, highlighting the difficulties faced by the manufacturer throughout the event.
The Cup Series race at Martinsville on October 26 saw Joe Gibbs Racing endure a tough afternoon, with Bell narrowly missing out on advancing to the Championship 4. Ultimately, he accrued enough points for seventh place, but missed the cutoff by just seven points, leaving him unable to join his teammates in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway.
Bell reflected on the challenging race dynamics, stating,
“I had track position at times, and I had tires at times, and I just wasn’t good enough,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver.
Mechanical Trouble Sidelines Key Contenders
The afternoon unfolded with mounting tension for several playoff drivers. Chase Briscoe, locked into the title race with a previous Talladega win, began the day running in or near the top 10. However, on lap 295, his hopes evaporated when an engine failure forced him to retire prematurely.
Commenting on the sudden mechanical setback, Briscoe explained,
“I was just running around there. I felt really good about coming here and where we were at and racing with [Kyle] Larson there and went to upshift and something happened. I’m not really sure; it’s unfortunate. We’ll go on to next week, and that won’t matter anyways,”
— Chase Briscoe, Driver.
Following Briscoe’s exit, two more Toyotas succumbed to engine problems in quick succession. Riley Herbst was forced out of the race when his No. 35 Monster Energy car suffered a failure just 28 laps after Briscoe’s retirement. Not long after, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin experienced a similar issue and made his way behind the wall.
Hamlin expressed his disappointment, telling reporters,
“We were just starting to come around,”
— Denny Hamlin, Driver. He continued,
“I like the outlook of kind of where we were at and how much better we got through the race, but obviously, no result,”
— Denny Hamlin, Driver.
Playoff Race Tightens Between Bell and Larson
The battle for the final Championship 4 spot came down to a direct points showdown between Bell and Kyle Larson. Entering the Martinsville weekend with a slim one-point advantage over Larson’s No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Bell needed only to out-finish his rival to secure his playoff fate.
Bell’s performance early in the race put him in a favorable position, running inside the top 10 for most of the afternoon. He earned valuable stage points, finishing eighth in the first stage and third in the second. Unfortunately for Bell, Larson finished ahead in both segments, steadily increasing his points advantage.
This development proved costly, as fellow playoff drivers Ryan Blaney and William Byron dominated the action, combining to lead 481 laps through the day and putting additional pressure on Bell’s playoff hopes.
As the track evolved and the laps dwindled, Bell noticed his performance slipping in the closing stints:
“By the end of the runs, it was slick out there,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver; he added,
“It seemed like [my tires] wore more than the others, and that was the difference maker,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver.
Late Caution Derails Bell’s Final Push
With a green-flag pit stop cycle interrupted by a caution on lap 379, Bell lost precious track position, falling to eleventh with only 111 laps left. Despite a valiant effort through subsequent restarts, he struggled to regain ground as competitors from Team Penske and Hendrick Motorsports pulled away in the closing stages.
Discussing the setup challenges that plagued his run, Bell remarked,
“You try and tighten it up and it just hurts the beginning of the run and then whenever you loosen it up,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver. He went on,
“I actually felt pretty good at the beginning, and I could keep pace and make a little bit of passes, and then it just really struggled at the end,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver.
Reflecting on the Playoff Elimination
As the checkered flag flew, Bell crossed the line in seventh, matching his 2024 result at Martinsville, where his playoff chase also ended. After climbing from his car and speaking with media, Bell evaluated his season and the outcome, saying,
“I’d say it feels a lot better than last year, for sure,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver. He displayed sportsmanship, acknowledging,
“We knew coming in here, we were going to have to outrun the No. 5, and we didn’t do it,”
— Christopher Bell, Driver.
What the Outcome Means for Bell and the Field
Christopher Bell’s exit from the NASCAR playoffs marks another year where the talented driver came up just short of the title round, highlighting the razor-thin margins and intensity within the NASCAR Cup Series. The result also cements advancement for drivers like William Byron, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Larson, setting the stage for a championship battle at Phoenix Raceway. For Bell and Joe Gibbs Racing, attention will now turn to regrouping for the next season, learning from the challenges encountered at Martinsville and throughout the intense playoff run.
Engine issues force @chasebriscoe down pit road. pic.twitter.com/fcdmLFcGz9
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 26, 2025
Now, @dennyhamlin goes behind the wall with mechanical issues of his own. pic.twitter.com/RL2eLFotr7
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 26, 2025
