Christopher Bell hurt his chances of winning the 2026 NASCAR Chase by crashing into the inside wall in the NASCAR Talladega race on Oct. 25.
Bell entered the race ranked second in the Chase points standings and just five points behind the leader, Kyle Larson. Bell spun and lost control of his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota as he entered pit road.
The crash came in Stage 1 as Bell pitted. Bell had to pit again five laps later for a tire change, then received a pass-through penalty after that when too many crew members went over the wall.
Bell is coming off a fourth-place finish on Oct. 18 at Phoenix, and a second-place finish on Oct. 11
at Charlotte. His last win came in the opening race of the NASCAR Chase on Sept. 6 at Darlington.
Bell said after the Las Vegas race on Oct. 4 that he believed he needed to win at least two of the last five races to claim the championship.
Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on X @MikeOrganWriter.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Christopher Bell spins, crashes into wall coming to pit road in NASCAR Talladega race
