Christopher Bell is a racer through, and through. The driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE is set to prove that to anyone who possibly doubts that fact this weekend at Pocono Raceway, as he will race through injury following a vicious impact last weekend at Michigan International Speedway.
On Tuesday evening, Bell’s Joe Gibbs Racing team confirmed that the driver suffered a fractured left wrist in the Lap 148 crash in last Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400. However, Bell has been cleared to compete in this weekend’s The Great American Getaway 400 at Pocono Raceway, and the team says the 31-year-old will do just that.
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“Christopher Bell suffered a fractured left wrist after an accident on lap 148 of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway,” Joe Gibbs Racing confirmed in an official team statement. “After being evaluated and released from the infield care center, Bell has been cleared and will be behind the wheel of the No. 20 Toyota Camry XSE this weekend at Pocono Raceway.”
Following last weekend’s race at Michigan, Joe Gibbs Racing team owner Coach Joe Gibbs explained in a post-race press conference that the team would follow a “wait and see” timeline to assess Bell’s injuries once they arrived back in North Carolina following the Michigan race weekend.
The Oklahoma native has been one of the fastest drivers on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit this season, but horrible stretches of luck have wiped out would-be victories throughout the opening 15 races of the season.
Bell’s rough luck culminated in the Lap 148 incident at Michigan, when he was battling with Chase Elliott for the runner-up position on track with 52 laps remaining in the event.
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As Bell was driving on the outside of Elliott heading through Turns 3 and 4, Elliott lost control of his No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Elliott attempted to spin his car harmlessly to the inside of the track, but the driver says the tires gripped up, and the car shot hard right into Bell’s car.
Bell, not expecting his competitor to randomly veer into the side of his car, was sent essentially full-speed into the outside SAFER barrier in Turn 4. The impact was so severe that track safety crews spent more than 20 minutes repairing the mangled retaining wall under a red flag.
With NASCAR moving from its “Playoffs” format, which it used from 2014 to 2025, to the traditional “Chase for the Cup” format that was utilized from 2004 to 2013, it put an additional emphasis on drivers competing in every race.
In the past, if a driver like Bell had to miss a race due to an injury in the regular season, they could simply win a race in order to gain an automatic berth into the Playoffs. Under ‘The Chase’ only the top-16 drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series championship standings advance to the 10-race battle for the title.
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Bell will gut it out through injury in order to give himself, and his team the best possible chance at hoisting the Bill France Cup in November.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/onsi/racing-america as Bell Fractured Left Wrist In Michigan Crash, Will Compete At Pocono.
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