Christopher Bell Press Conference – New Hampshire Motor Speedway

THE MODERATOR: As you possibly can see, we’re joined by our race-winning driver Christopher Bell with the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

Q. Adam was simply in right here and he mentioned at one level he tried to teach you slightly bit and also you mentioned you had it in management over the radio. What occurred there and what made you are feeling so assured that you just had it?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: Yeah, so one factor I actually dislike is each time individuals begin giving me lap countdowns. That is one factor — I’ve actually struggled each time I made the transition to NASCAR as a result of the races are so lengthy. Yeah, so like even my spotter, I feel they only get caught up slightly bit within the second, and so they’re like, hey, 20 to go, 18 to go, 15 to go. I am like, dude, I do not want a depend down right here. Then Adam sort of — I do not bear in mind precisely what he mentioned, however one thing alongside the strains of we have 50 laps to go, do not burn your stuff up, and I am like, man, there’s nonetheless a lot race left; I do not want a reminder of how for much longer we have to go. At that cut-off date I had a good suggestion of the place we have been at within the race and the way for much longer we needed to go on tires.

Yeah, simply needed to let him know that I felt assured about what we had, and it labored out.

Q. Christopher, you are undefeated right here within the Xfinity Collection; you have obtained a truck win, now a Cup win. What makes you so good right here at New Hampshire?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: I want I might let you know, however the fact of it’s I’ve simply had nice race automobiles. It is a bummer that — I feel I crashed or had issues in 2020 with the 95 automotive as a result of early in that race we have been wanting prefer it was going to be a high 10 or doable high 5 after which I feel we had a brake rotor explode or one thing like that that took me out of it. That was a bummer, and except for that race it has been an ideal racetrack for me.

I do not suppose there’s something that I’ve that makes me good right here. I feel I simply have nice race automobiles that enable me to succeed.

Q. Christopher, JGR has been dominant at this observe with the Xfinity automobiles and the Cup automobiles, and simply to observe up, what has made this group so profitable up right here?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: Yeah, easy reply is simply the setup. However with that being mentioned, the setups at the moment within the Subsequent-Gen period is in contrast to anything, and you’ll’t even use notes from the final 10, 12 years of the Gen-6 automotive.

In a few of these locations that we go to love Richmond is one other nice racetrack for JGR and a few of their philosophies or no matter translated and we have been good at Richmond with the Subsequent-Gen automotive, however then you definitely have a look at the street programs which have been racetracks that we have been tremendous robust finally 12 months or the final a number of years with the Gen-6 automotive and now we’re just about out to lunch with Subsequent Gen.

Yeah, I actually cannot discover a rhyme or motive to why we succeed at sure racetracks, however they positively have their good tracks and dangerous tracks.

Q. Ford gained the final 4 races right here. Right this moment was sort of the other with Toyota dominating. Is that simply sort of the Subsequent-Gen automotive or is there every other issue that led to that?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: Yeah, I imply, I feel it is simply what group hits it that weekend. There’s clearly much more Chevy and Ford groups than there are Toyota groups, so there’s much more alternative for them to dominate the race than it’s for us.

Final week at Atlanta — nicely, it is a speedway race so I am not going to depend that. Earlier than that we had Highway America; the JGR Toyotas have actually struggled at street programs this 12 months. Then when you look again at Nashville we have been among the best teams, in all probability one of the best group. It simply is available in waves, and there is racetracks we’re good at and racetracks we’re not good at but.

Q. Clearly you are the 14th winner this 12 months, now Martin is on the lower line. For you is it extra simply reduction that you’ve that win and you feel protected on factors at this level?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: Yeah, I imply, it has been traumatic. After the primary couple races of the 12 months, I sort of wrote off pointing our method into the championship, after which we had a stretch of actually good races and sort of turned that round to love hey, we might be able to do that, and then you definitely’ve obtained guys that saved successful, and the cutoff line saved creeping up and up and up, so it feels actually good to hopefully get myself above that cutoff line by a pair spots.

Q. Once you advised Adam that you just obtained it, did you simply have faith in what you noticed your automotive was doing and what you noticed Chase’s automotive was doing that you’d win?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: No, I positively did not really feel like I used to be going to win at that time, however I feel Adam was simply attempting to be sure that I wasn’t getting spun up within the automotive and getting excited to see him in entrance of me, I suppose. However at that time there have been nonetheless so many laps left that there was no motive to get excited. You simply needed to take what it was supplying you with, and one of the best automotive was going to win. At that time we nonetheless had a ton of laps left, so the automobiles have been going to undergo one other migration of lap time loss and tire degradation, and yeah, no matter automotive was finest on the long term was going to win at that time, and I needed to let him know that I used to be calm contained in the automotive and simply doing my job.

Q. You mentioned one of the best automotive on the long term was going to win, however I requested Chase who had the higher automotive and he mentioned that he in all probability might have gained in his automotive. I am curious, do you are feeling such as you drove an ideal final stage there? Is that one in every of your higher runs as a driver?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: You recognize, this sport of NASCAR racing and pavement racing on the whole is simply so humbling. I will let you know a narrative of one in every of my, I do not know, youthful Xfinity races. I feel me — and Kyle was within the subject, we have been in Phoenix. I handed Kyle on one of many runs, and inside my head, I am like, man, I am getting good at this racetrack, after which we come into the pit cease, make a pit cease, come again out after which the subsequent run I am operating fifth and I am unable to do something.

What that engraved in my head is you’re solely nearly as good as your race automotive. In case your race automotive is quick and you’ve got a first-place automotive, it is fairly straightforward to get to first so long as you do your job. Should you’re a fifth-place race automotive you are in all probability not going to take it from fifth to first.

With that being mentioned, I had a first-place race automotive. On the finish of that race, mainly the third stage my automotive was the quickest one on the market, particularly on the long term, and I did my job to maximise that.

Q. I do know this can be a gas mileage observe. How a lot did you place to your mindset to avoid wasting gas in that last stage?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: You recognize, that is not my division in any respect. That was all as much as Adam, and he advised me with I feel 75 or 70 laps to go that we have been good on gas, in order that was the remainder of it.

However yeah, gas mileage, I simply do what I am advised. The crew chief tells me when to pit and tells me if I’ve to avoid wasting and tells me if I am good to go, and at the moment he advised me I used to be good to go.

Q. We talked to a whole lot of y’all within the bullpen yesterday right here about what you anticipated of the observe and when you thought it will run sort of like Gateway and Martinsville and among the others which can be actually robust to go. Did the race unfold dealing with sensible and passing sensible as predicted for y’all?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: I feel so. First off, I’ll begin by saying that I believed the observe situations at the moment have been wonderful. It was a lot enjoyable with the ability to use slightly little bit of the PJ1 that was left on the underside within the exits, on the highest the place guys do not sometimes run. There have been so many alternative lanes that you would sort of decide and select to get some clear air and make passes. That was superior.

I really feel like in case your automotive was good, you would go, and in case your automotive wasn’t good, you would not go.

Yeah, I used to be pleased with the product at the moment, and I do not precisely bear in mind the place I restarted, but it surely was not on the entrance row in stage 3. My automotive was good, and I used to be in a position to make my method up there.

Q. Final 12 months if you gained the Xfinity race you mentioned you would solely discover one fan carrying your tee shirt and you did not have any memorabilia or merch. Have you ever gotten any extra well-liked up right here in a 12 months with one other win?

CHRISTOPHER BELL: Undoubtedly do not suppose I’ve seen or observed any extra Christopher Bell shirts. However Rheem had an enormous group of individuals right here on the race, and so I obtained to go up and do a collection go to pre-race and I noticed a pair children carrying my shirts, and I picked one out and mentioned if I win — I knew they have been going to be going to Victory Lane, so if I gained I used to be going to present it to him.

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