Christopher Bell secured his second consecutive NASCAR Cup Series victory on Sunday, overcoming late-race chaos and a hard-charging field to win the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas (COTA). The Joe Gibbs Racing driver overtook Kyle Busch with five laps to go and held off defending race winner William Byron to capture his first career win at the Texas road course.
Bell, who entered the weekend with confidence after a strong showing in Atlanta, lived up to his own expectations by delivering a clutch performance in the final laps. His No. 20 Toyota crossed the finish line 0.433 seconds ahead of Byron, marking the 11th Cup Series win of Bell’s career and his first back-to-back victories in NASCAR’s premier series.
The race featured a thrilling battle between Bell, Busch, and Byron, with Busch leading a race-high 42 laps. However, a late caution on Lap 78 reshuffled the field, setting up a dramatic finish that saw Bell use fresher tires to chase down Busch and make the race-winning pass.
A Late Caution Changes Everything
Busch appeared to be in control before Denny Hamlin locked his brakes in Turn 6, spinning Austin Dillon into the gravel trap and bringing out the third and final caution. At the time, Busch had a 4.0-second lead over Bell, but the restart on Lap 83 allowed Bell to close the gap.
Once the race resumed, Busch held onto the lead for several laps, but Bell had the advantage with better tires. On Lap 90, Bell surged past Busch with a strong run off Turn 20. Byron followed a lap later, moving into second and setting up a battle for the win.
Byron pressured Bell in the closing laps but never got close enough to make a move. After the race, Byron acknowledged how close he was to taking the lead but commended Bell for his clean racing.
“It was really close. I felt like if I could just get to his inside, maybe I’d have a shot,” Byron said. “But he ran a great race, and I didn’t want to wreck him to do it.”
Busch, who dropped to fifth after a physical battle with Bell, reflected on how the late caution and tire wear cost him a chance at victory.
“The two-lap fresher tires made the difference,” Busch said. “I was trying to manage my tires before that caution came out, but once we restarted, I had to use them up trying to hold off the 20. Christopher ran me hard but clean. He deserved it.”
Elliott Overcomes Early Incident for Strong Finish
Chase Elliott’s race got off to a disastrous start when he was turned around in Turn 1 on the opening lap following contact from Ross Chastain. The impact broke a toe link on Elliott’s No. 9 Chevrolet, forcing his team to make repairs during the first stage break.
Restarting in 36th, Elliott methodically worked his way through the field and capitalized on a late-race strategy call for fresh tires. By the checkered flag, he had climbed to fourth place, an impressive recovery after being involved in an early incident.
“It was a crazy day,” Elliott said. “I felt like we had a car capable of competing up front, but we had to dig out of a hole. Alan (Gustafson) made a great call at the end to put us in position, and we were able to salvage a strong finish.”
Zilisch’s Cup Debut Ends in Hard Wreck
Making his first Cup Series start, 18-year-old road course standout Connor Zilisch showed promise early in the race. After suffering a flat tire on the first lap and falling to 33rd, he fought back to 14th by the end of Stage 2.
However, his day ended abruptly on Lap 50 when his teammate, Daniel Suárez, lost control in Turn 19 and spun into Zilisch’s path. With nowhere to go, Zilisch collided with Suárez and slammed into the SAFER barrier, ending his Cup debut.
“All I saw was a cloud of smoke, and then it was too late,” Zilisch said. “I thought Suárez was going to keep spinning left, but he came right back up, and I had nowhere to go. It’s a tough way to end it, but we showed a lot of speed today.”
Final Race Results – EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix
- Christopher Bell (Toyota)
- William Byron (Chevrolet)
- Tyler Reddick (Toyota)
- Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)
- Kyle Busch (Chevrolet)
- Shane van Gisbergen (Chevrolet)
- Chris Buescher (Ford)
- Noah Gragson (Ford)
- Alex Bowman (Chevrolet)
- Todd Gilliland (Ford)
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Richmond Raceway next, where short-track specialists will look to capitalize on one of the season’s most physically demanding races.
