Christopher Bell Trashes Chase Elliott’s “Helpful” Narrative by Condemning NASCAR’s “Useless” Formality

Does practice make a difference for the teams and drivers ahead of races? Well, ever since NASCAR decided to limit the practice run window to just 20 minutes, there’s been a demand for more time to run the practice laps ahead of qualifying. For NASCAR, the move is seen as a measure to control the cost of racing and thus an essential change moving forward. But teams and drivers need more time to get their cars tuned before heading out for the main event.

While the pushback from the driver’s side seems unanimous, Chase Elliott had a rather interesting perspective regarding the limited practice sessions ahead of the Würth 400 race. “I mean, the grip level will probably be lower tomorrow than what it is today, but I don’t think the practice is completely a wash because of that. I think it’ll still be helpful.”

However, Joe Gibbs Racing ace Christopher Bell wasn’t sold on the idea shared by his HMS rival. And was quick to share his view on the practice runs at Dover Motor Speedway, labeling them as useless.

Article continues below this ad

Here’s why practice sessions at Dover Motor Speedway are obsolete, according to JGR starMonster Mile is like no other race track- the concrete surface of the track reacts to the weather conditions. Therefore, a practice run of 20 minutes for both groups combined ahead of qualifying doesn’t add value to the preparations or tuning of the race car. So this adds more onus on qualifying than the practice itself.

Bell said in an interview, “The thing that’s tough about Dover is practice is pretty useless unless you have a lot of it. Because it takes a lot to get the track rubbered up, and in conditions that you’re going to see on Sunday… I mean, today is going to be all about positioning yourself for tomorrow with that qualifying session. But I don’t think anybody’s going to really know what we have until the green flag flies”.

Moreover, the Oklahoma native further shared his views on what would be the optimal time for drivers to have a fruitful practice run. “Honestly, it doesn’t matter to me. I enjoy the 20-minute practice sessions. Here at Dover, it doesn’t matter or the 20 minutes isn’t enough… But it changes track to track, you go to Kansas or Texas in 20 minutes and one set of tires is plenty at Dover, it’s not. It doesn’t matter to me either way, though.”

Given how bleak Bell’s recent runs have been after a strong start to this season, a positive result at Dover could help him get back on track and contest for wins.

Article continues below this ad

Can Dover help get Bell on track after a streak of disappointing finishes?Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest NASCAR stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

The No. 20 team was soaring high and looked like a genuine championship contender after the win at Phoenix. In the first seven starts, the driver had five top-ten finishes, and a win sealed off his playoff spot. However, the last three weeks have been far from ideal for Bell and his team.

He ran into trouble at Martinsville Speedway, where he had his misfortunes with the tires and just couldn’t contest for a better track position throughout the race. In the end, he finished the race on the tail end, in the 35th spot. Going into Texas, he was supposed to bounce back from his bitter end to the race last weekend, but his struggles continued at the mile-and-a-half racetrack.

Article continues below this ad

In his efforts to run at full throttle, Bell lost control of his No. 20 Camry and spun right into the wall during stage 2. The series of mishaps continued for him late in the race, and he could only have a 17th-place finish. Talladega was the same story, as he found himself on the receiving end of a nasty wreck that took him out of the race on lap 132.

He has finished inside of the top-ten position in his last two starts at Dover. And considering the string of bad results, he will gladly accept a similar outcome for today’s race.