Christopher Bell has been The Story of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season in its first month, and that continued on Sunday.
Bell led a race-high 105 laps and fought off teammate Denny Hamlin on a green-white checkered restart to win the Shriners Children’s 500 race at Phoenix Raceway, his third win in a row in four races to open the season.
Bell is the first driver to win three races in a row in the Cup Series since Kyle Larson in 2021. Larson did that twice that season.
Here are the winners and losers from Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix:
PHOENIX RACE RESULTS: Who won NASCAR Phoenix race? Winner is Christopher Bell, plus full results
NASCAR Phoenix winners and losers
Winner: Christopher Bell
What a start to the season for Bell, who has been poised to take the mantle as the best driver in the sport.
But he had to earn it on the final restart.
On a green-white-checkered restart, Denny Hamlin was even with Bell throughout the final two laps. But Bell leaned on his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate and prevailed off the final corner for his third consecutive victory.
Bell is the first driver since Kyle Larson in 2021 to win three races in a row. It’s time to take Bell seriously when talking about the best drivers in NASCAR. In fact, the conversation now starts with him.
Winner: Josh Berry
Josh Berry had a strong Stage 1 after a good qualifying run, then slipped toward the back end of the top 20 in the middle 150 laps of Sunday’s race.
But the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford took off on the final run with the fresh option tires on the car, and he finished a season-best 4th.
Both Berry and the Wood Brothers entered 2025 with something to prove after disappointing 2024 seasons. Sunday’s result and run is very encouraging.
Winner: Hendrick Motorsports
William Byron’s unfortunate early pit stop before a caution leading into the final tire run robbed Hendrick Motorsports of their best chance to win.
But Byron, Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott all finished in the top 10, with Larson finishing a team-high 3rd behind the Hamlin-Bell duel to the checkered flag.
Byron and Larson were in the top 10 for the majority of the day, and Bowman (7th) drove into the top 10 in the final 100 laps. But Elliott, who finished 10th, was mired in the teens all day before a final-run jolt on the final two restarts to eek out a top-10.
Bell has the headlines as he should, but Hendrick Motorsports has had an encouraging start to 2025.
Loser: Spire Motorsports
Spire Motorsports as a whole had a very encouraging Saturday at Phoenix Raceway. The three-car race team was fast in practice, and all three cars qualified inside the top 10.
But Sunday’s race did not go as well. Carson Hocevar managed four stage points with a 7th-place finish in Stage 1, but Spire’s race went downhill in Stage 2 on back-to-back cautions.
Michael McDowell, on the softer option tires, cut his right-rear tire and hit the wall on Lap 92. McDowell’s team had to make significant repairs, and he finished 27th at 22 laps down.
On the restart, Justin Haley and Hocevar were involved in a multi-car crash when Briscoe, Haley and Ty Gibbs all combined coming off of turn 2. Haley and Hocevar were done for the day, finishing 34th and 36th respectively.
For the optimism of Saturday’s progress, Sunday’s race left few positives for Spire Motorsports.
Loser: Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowski needed a good run and finish on Sunday, but he didn’t get it.
Keselowski was involved in the aforementioned multi-car crash in Stage 2, and his day ended with a DNF at 33rd place.
The first month of the season has been a bad one for the RFK Racing co-owner after finishes of 26th, 39th and 15th coming into the weekend. This result is no help.
Loser: Ty Gibbs
Gibbs’ long day was turning positive late in Sunday’s race, until it didn’t.
Gibbs was caught up in the multi-car crash that ended the days of Keselowski and the two Spire drivers, and could not manage to stay on the lead lap at the end of Stage 2. After getting back on the lead lap, Gibbs used fresh tires to move into the top 15.
But Gibbs’ day ended eight laps short of the full distance when his brakes failed, cutting a tire down and hitting the wall. His day ended with a DNF and a 25th-place finish.
Gibbs needed a good day more than any driver at Phoenix; he entered the day in 36th in points after finishes of 16th, 32nd and 34th to open the season. Forget the pressures of winning the first race of his Cup Series season, because Gibbs may already be win-or-bust for the 2025 playoffs.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: NASCAR Phoenix winners and losers: Christopher Bell enters elite status with win
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