Defending Homestead winner Christopher Bell is looking to bounce back from a disappointing race in Las Vegas

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Christopher Bell quickly moved on after what he called a disappointing race last Sunday.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver lost to Joey Logano last weekend in Las Vegas despite dominating the race. Bell led for 156 laps in the race, but was beaten by Logano, who increased his fuel mileage to secure the victory after Bell had to pit for gas. Logano’s victory made him the first driver to reach the winner-take-all championship finals, which will be held next month in Arizona.

“I have to say that (on) Monday night, I closed the book and moved on,” Bell said. “There are a lot of worse positions to be found and obviously once this disappointment wears off, we realize we’re doing really well, we had a great day in Las Vegas and we’re trying to carry that momentum to Homestead. “

Bell earned his ticket to the final at Homestead-Miami Speedway last year, and on Sunday he’ll be looking to shake off last weekend’s shock and do it again.

He’s the last winner at two of three consecutive racetracks – Homestead in 2023 and Phoenix in March – but he knows that doesn’t guarantee 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’re going to hunt’ is a good way to look at it. However, the results of the previous race do not guarantee anything.”

This summer, Bell emerged as a legitimate championship contender after claiming victory in New Hampshire to mark his third victory for Joe Gibbs Racing. Bell has won multiple races in each of the last three seasons, which is the main reason why Gibbs has led 996 laps since June 30 – 548 of them led by the 29-year-old.

Bell enters Sunday’s race above the sideline with Kyle Larson and William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports.

Bell said the strategy for the next two races before the championship would be to score maximum points. After Sunday in Homestead, the third round will take place at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia, followed by the finale in Phoenix.

“You’re never really safe,” Bell said. “The three of us, William, Kyle and I, the cards are kind of stacking up, we’re basically racing for points. … It’s going to be a battle all the way to the checkered flag in Martinsville and, you know, everyone knows how important these victories are.

In crisis

Denny Hamlin admitted his pit crew is in a “slump” after their unsuccessful playoff run so far. Pit troubles were responsible for Hamlin’s eighth-place finish in Las Vegas last weekend, putting him in a difficult position for the remaining two races. Still, Gibbs’ driver sticks to who he is.

“We have to get through this and I feel like this is the best group we can put on pit road,” Hamlin said Saturday. “And it’s definitely not because of talent or anything like that. They have all the keys needed for this. They were the best crew on pit road in the first quarter of this year, but there were certainly a lot of different issues on pit road.

Hamlin is below the cut line and needs enough points or a win to make the finals. He has two races left and said if he finds himself in a position to win next week at Martinsville, he can do it.

“It’s very difficult to win these races,” Hamlin said. “We saw it. I definitely feel like it’s a race track, if I had to (win), I definitely can. “I prefer not to know.”

On the Bubble

The remaining drivers below the cutoff line are regular season champion Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing, reigning Cup champion Ryan Blaney of Team Penske and Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports.

All three drivers are coming off disastrous races in Las Vegas after being involved in the same crash early on. The crash occurred when Reddick’s Toyota made contact with Elliott after Reddick tried to get into track position and misjudged how much room he had.

The crash ended Reddick’s race, while Blaney and Elliott were able to continue and finish 32nd and 33rd, respectively.