Christopher Bell’s Crew Chief’s Absence Bites JGR, Sends Jimmie Johnson’s Star Into Hilarious “First Time” Introspections

Going into a NASCAR Cup Series race weekend at Richmond without a crew chief was going to be a trick prospect for Christopher Bell. While there were no changes in the way he ran the race on the track, his first pit stop was certainly eventful. Truth be told, he was lucky to escape damage to his No. 20 race car.

Having clinched the 10-stage win of the season, Christopher Bell headed to the pit road and was eager to hold onto his lead. However, there was a bit of confusion between him and Chris Sherwood, who is filling in for Adam Stevens. In a bid to win the race off the pit road, the JGR star hit No. 43 of Erik Jones while exiting. Although Bell managed to avoid damage to his race car, Jones was sent spinning into his pit box.

It was a rather unusual sight for the spectators too, as the #43 Toyota Camry was facing the wall while the pit crew did their job. Sharing his take on the incident, Jones via the team radio said, “That was the first time I’ve done one right at 90 degrees.”

Meanwhile, C. Bell and his team took a huge sigh of relief after avoiding any serious damage to the race car. “We looked at the picture. There’s some damage to the grill, but nothing structural. The splitter is fine. Everything should be good here,” Sherwood said via the radio. Bell, acknowledging the details, sounded relieved. “10-4. Wouldn’t have expected anything else.”

So far, it has been Joe Gibbs Racing dominance, with Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell battling for the lead.

The good news for Bell is that his shot-caller, Adam Stevens was involved in today’s race in a virtual capacity. And going by the strategy-heavy trend of the race with the tire selection, a vital input by the crew chief could make or break the driver’s race.

Adam Stevens wasn’t far away from the racing action

Although Stevens wasn’t in a physical capacity to be at the racetrack after suffering an injury to his knees, he found a way to guide the #20 team. He was in constant communication with the team via JGR’s war room setup, where he kept tabs on each and every move made by his driver. Bell did mention Stevens couldn’t keep himself away from visiting the race shop: “That sucker’s been in the shop every single day this week. So you’re not going to be able to keep him down.”

As it turns out, he wanted a more race-like environment for his war room set-up. In a bid to deliver on his demands, the #20 team installed additional cameras in their pit box. This way, Stevens was able to get real-time updates on the events that unfolded on the racetrack. But that wasn’t enough, as Bell ran into more trouble after turning Jone’s car on the pit road.

Having led 115 laps, Christopher Bell was perhaps a little too eager to come off the pit road. In doing so, he made a rookie mistake, speeding while returning to track. As a result, he had to serve a pass-through penalty, and all of his hard work was undone, costing him the race win. Soon after this pit stop, most of the drivers turned to the option tire, and Bell from here on couldn’t contest to get into a winning position.

But he dug deep and salvaged the race with a late charge, finishing the race in P6, just behind the leaders who were involved in a late-race scrap. While the #20 team wasn’t able to execute their race plan, Bell’s race car is still lightning quick and remains a contender for the title, with the playoffs edging closer.