Story By: TOYOTA GAZOO RACING – AVONDALE, AZ – For the third straight weekend, Christopher Bell took home the checkered flag in a thrilling finish Sunday afternoon at Phoenix Raceway. Leading 105 total laps, the driver of the No. 20 Toyota Camry XSE for Joe Gibbs Racing became the first driver in the Next Gen era to win three straight races.
Bell started from the 11th position and was towards the front of the field throughout the 312 laps on Sunday, including a Stage 2 victory. After a late yellow forced an overtime finish, Bell had to hold off hard-charging competitors behind him, including teammate Denny Hamlin in the second-closest finish in Phoenix Raceway history to take home the victory. Bell now has 12 career Cup Series wins and has already tied his career-best mark of three race wins in a season, just four weeks into 2025.
For Hamlin, today’s runner-up result was his best finish of the season and marked his 17th career top-five and 23rd top-10 finish at Phoenix Raceway in 40 career starts. LEGACY MOTOR CLUB’s John Hunter Nemechek also had a really solid day, charging from a 36th place starting position to be inside the top-10 in the closing stages of the race and finishing 14th at the checkered flag.
The NASCAR Cup Series stays out on the west coast next weekend and heads to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the first of its two visits in 2025. Coverage can be seen on FS1 next Sunday, March 16, at 3:30 p.m. EST with live radio coverage on PRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Phoenix Raceway
Race 4 of 36 – 312 miles, 312 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
- 1st, CHRISTOPHER BELL
- 2nd, DENNY HAMLIN
- 3rd, Kyle Larson*
- 4th, Josh Berry*
- 5th, Chris Buescher*
- 14th, JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK
- 18th, ERIK JONES
- 20th, TYLER REDDICK
- 25th, TY GIBBS
- 29th, BUBBA WALLACE
- 35th, CHASE BRISCOE
- 37th, RILEY HERBST
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Reeser’s Fine Foods Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
How were you able to hold everyone off on the restart and get the victory?
“I have no idea! I knew it was going to be all about who could get clear. I did everything I could to drive deep in the corner and get clear, and I never got clear. He (Denny Hamlin) got back on the outside of me. It was just some hard racing and I really felt like I was in the worst spot coming to the line on the bottom and I just got lucky that (Kyle) Larson tried to dive three wide and gave me that shove there. It was like we’re at Talladega again (laughs).”
How good was your car today?
“Yeah my Reeser’s No. 20 Camry XSE was incredible, especially on the yellow tires (primary tires). It seemed like the red tires (options), the field was a little bit closer. I would imagine that’s going to be the tire we race on when we come back (to Phoenix Raceway) in the fall, so have to dig in and see what we were missing to be a little bit better on the red tires. Super proud of everyone on this No. 20 group. Obviously, the boys are killing it. This was our first race with Reeser’s on the car and we got them in victory lane. What a day for JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing)!”
You entered the Toyota program around 12 or so years ago. How have you gotten to where you are today from that starting point?
“I’m glad you asked that as Tyler Gibbs (president, TRD USA – Toyota Racing Development) is right over there (in the media center). Don’t look away, Tyler (laughs). Tyler Gibbs is the reason. Between he, Jack Irving (general manager, TRD USA – Toyota Racing Development), David Wilson (former president, TRD USA – Toyota Racing Development), they were the three guys that took a chance on me in 2014. It’s unbelievable to look back at it and whenever in 2014, when it seemed so far away to be here today in this moment. Looking back it, it felt like it happened overnight and going through those years – the dirt cars and getting that first contract that I got from Toyota Racing Development saying I was going to run 15 Late Model races and make you a stock car driver and I’m like ‘how is this going to happen?’ They’ve always under-promised and over-delivered, and that was something that was a life lesson for me. Don’t over-extend yourself. Don’t promise more than you can take. But those 15 Late Model races turned into those and seven Truck races. The following year was full-time Trucks. Whenever I got into full-time Trucks, I think I was 20, 21-years-old and at that time, Erik Jones was in the Cup Series and he was younger than me, I’m pretty sure. And Chase Elliott was younger than me. I was like, ‘man, I need to get to the Cup Series tomorrow! Otherwise, I’m not going to make it.’ And they said, stay the course. They believed in me. They allowed me to develop as a race car driver. And yeah, it felt like so far away in those early years and now living it, it feels like it was just yesterday. Thank you, Tyler. It means the world to me.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 2nd
Can you describe your emotions after a great run and near win today?
“Yeah, great job out of this No. 11 Sport Clips Camry XSE team. Got better and better as it (the race) went. Pit crew did a phenomenal job to keep us in the game, and when we had a bad stop in the middle, they made up for it at the end. First time we were able to get some clean air all day. Obviously, our car was really fast. Really kind of wanted it to stay green there because I thought the long runs is really where we were going to be able to excel, especially on these tires. But we got a good restart. The No. 5 (Larson) really gave me a great push on the frontstretch on the restart, down the backstretch. I had kind of position on the No. 20 (Christopher Bell). I knew he was going to ship it in there. He had to use me. He could. Obviously, we just kind of ran out of racetrack there. Great finish. Great job by the whole Joe Gibbs team to give us some fast cars.”
BUBBA WALLACE, No. 23 Leidos Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing
Finishing Position: 29th
Can you tell us what happened there?
“Brakes blew out. Unfortunate. Didn’t have any sign leading up to that last restart there. Just noticed on lap three or four that the pedal just traveled further than it had – just by a little bit. Turned on my fans, came back and that was it. It’s a bummer. We didn’t have the best of a start or mid-race for our Leidos No. 23 Camry XSE team. But, felt like we finally got our big break and cracked the top-10 and make something of it. Trying to survive and just got ripped out from underneath us. Unfortunate, I hate it. We’ve had such a strong start to the season. All-in-all, can be upset about it, but it is what it is. The team executed. I feel like I executed all day and just wasn’t in the cards. We’ll head back home and fly back out here to (Las) Vegas and have some fun.”
CHASE BRISCOE, No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 35th
Take us through what happened there in that incident.
“Yeah, that’s about the biggest you can crash at Phoenix. Yeah, it was a big one. On that restart, we were three, four-wide and I just climbed over the No. 7 (Justin Haley)’s right front. Yeah, unfortunate. We were able to go from the tail (of the field) up to 12th or 13th and felt good about our No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota. Yeah, got myself in a bad spot. Was probably trying to fade a little more left with the No. 77 (Carson Hocevar) on my right rear and yeah, just went over the No. 7’s right front. Yeah, unfortunate but try to learn from it and not do it again and go onto (Las) Vegas.”
RILEY HERBST, No. 35 Monster Energy Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing
Finishing Position: 37th
What did you see in that incident there off turn two?
“I don’t really know. It happened really fast. Was just chaos there off turn two. It gets so wide and then needs to funnel back down for the straightaway. Yeah, just got to go low to avoid it (the incident), but got collected in it. Frustrating for sure. But, go back home (Las Vegas) next weekend and will try to have a good run for the No. 35 Monster Energy Camry XSE team.”