Christopher Bell delivered a remarkable performance Thursday night in winning the Chili Bowl Prelim A-Main, entering the championship alongside Kyle Larson, who also won his preliminary race. This victory added another milestone in Bell’s long-standing relationship with the dirt event.
Bell has competed 13 times in Tulsa and his track record includes three straight championship victories from 2017 to 2019. After sitting out for two seasons, Bell returned last year and finished 10th in Saturday’s final. This time around, he wasted no time reasserting himself as a force on earth inside the Tulsa Expo Center.
Advertisement
Bell opened his 2026 Chili Bowl campaign Monday night with a wire-to-wire performance in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Race of Champions. He set the pace in qualifying and took pole position for the 25-lap event after scoring a reverse zero.
From the drop of the green flag, Bell controlled the race, briefly absorbing pressure from eventual runner-up Shane Golobic before sealing his fourth victory in the Race of Champions. Notably, it was his first time as an owner-driver.
Bell continued his winning streak during the Heats on Thursday. After winning Heat Race 5, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver added his ninth career preliminary victory at the Chili Bowl Nationals.
Bell managed to win Thursday’s A-Main preliminary race despite starting from eighth on the grid for the 30-lap feature. In the first part of the race, his progress was affected by traffic. But as the race entered its final stages and the intensity increased, Bell adjusted his approach.
Bell altered his running line, unlocked extra speed and began to move forward as the chaos around him created opportunities. In the final laps, he passed CJ Leary and Ryan Bernal, moving into the top two in a decisive sequence. Once clear, Bell closed the gate and reached the checkered flag first.
Advertisement
Now that the major events of the championship are looming,ace JGR expressed confidence that his car has the raw pace to tackle the big moments. “I feel really good about the speed of the race car. I think the race car is super fast,” he said.
“We worked on it and modified the car a little bit. I still think we still have a little bit to make the car a little bit more handleable, especially when the track gets really dangerous like that. The car is super, super fast,” added Bell.
With Bell and Larson once again engaged in the finale, dirt fans are ready for an elite battle. This will also serve as a precursor to their fight in the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series season.
The position WATCH: Christopher Bell takes a bow after Thursday night’s domination in Tulsa appeared first on The rush to sport.
