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Christopher Bell recently cleared Austin Dillon of any blame for the collision at Watkins Glen, just as Bell was preparing to enter the pit road. He attributed the incident to a simple miscommunication and took personal responsibility for it.
The mishap unfolded on lap 62 of the second playoff NASCAR Cup Series race when Austin Dillon, driving in the #3 Richard Childress Racing vehicle, collided with the rear of Bell’s #20 Toyota Camry XSE. The impact caused Christopher Bell’s car to spin out and necessitated a pit stop for repairs. Reflecting on the event in a discussion with Fox Sports journalist Bob Pockrass, Christopher Bell stated:
"My incident at Walk in Glen- It was honestly a mistake on my part. I got called to pit road late and just didn't do a good job of getting myself in position to come to pit road. [...] I just don't think Austin [Dillon] saw my hand signal getting into the 7th and then he thought that we were still contesting the position."
Christopher Bell voiced his expectations for the upcoming Bristol race, anticipating a scenario similar to Watkins Glen. He commented,
"I think Bristol could be more the same for sure. But once you understand that people in front of you are going to be pitting, you typically give them a little bit more leeway and stuff. So, I think if everyone communicates on track, it'll probably be, no issues."
However, while Bell excused Dillon for the recent mishap, he had previously criticized Austin Dillon’s aggressive tactics during the Richmond race. In that incident, Dillon's maneuver on the final lap contributed to him ending a 68-race winless streak by spinning out Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin.
NASCAR eventually did not let Dillon qualify for the playoffs citing it as a deliberate wreck on the final lap as the reason. Reflecting on the same at Michigan, Bell had remarked,
"I’m happy. I’m happy that he [Austin Dillon] isn’t in the playoffs." [8:56]
Christopher Bell voiced his discontent with his finish at Watkins Glen, yet he remains optimistic about his prospects at Bristol
Despite a P14 finish in the second week of the playoffs, Christopher Bell appreciated the positive shift in his standings, having moved away from the playoff cutline. He currently stands at P2, with a cushion of 46 points over the bubble line. Reflecting on the race, he remarked,
“That was disappointing, but ultimately if you had told me that I'm going to come out of here with gaining on the points off the cutoff line, I would have taken it. So it wasn't pretty how we got there, but we got there, and now we can go to Bristol and relax a little bit more.”[ at 1:20]
Bell also expressed frustration over his performance, particularly because he had previously excelled on road courses. As he prepares for the upcoming race at Bristol Motor Speedway, where he holds an average finish of 11.5 over four starts, Bell remains focused on improving his results.
