When Christopher Bell finished second to Ryan Blaney in the March 8 NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway, no one—particularly Bell—would have predicted that the runner-up finish would be the first of seven, along with no victories, across the season.
Unfortunately for Bell, that’s exactly what has happened. The latest second place was recorded Sunday at Iowa Speedway when Bell led 108 laps and seemed on the road to victory only to be foiled by pit-stop strategy in the closing miles. He lost by 0.253 of a second to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Ty Gibbs. It was Bell’s fourth second-place run in the past five races.
Bell’s runner-up repetition has been one of the oddest things in the Cup season. From the Phoenix race in March to last week’s event at Iowa, Bell has led 363 laps, including at least one lap in six of the seven races. When Bell lost by 0.399 of a second to Blaney at Phoenix, that would be the biggest margin of loss in his run of runner-up finishes. The closest margin was 0.068 of a second at Atlanta—also to Blaney—in July.
Bell’s runner-up finish to Corey Heim July 26 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway marked Bell’s only second-place finish in which he failed to lead a lap.
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Christopher Bell (right) congratulates Ty Gibbs on his win in Iowa.
Bell’s seven runner-up finishes ties Harry Gant (in the 1981 season) for most second-place runs without a win.
Remarkably, Bell could have had several more second-place runs. He wrecked with Carson Hocevar at Atlanta while running second and finished 21st. At Kansas, he was in third in overtime and crashed, finishing 20th. At Pocono, his car ran out of fuel with two laps to go, dropping him from fourth to 26th.
Despite the obvious frustrations of the season, Bell sits sixth in the point standings and will be part of the Chase. Of the top eight drivers in points, however, he is the only one without a race victory.
He called Sunday’s runner-up finish “a bad second-place finish,” in large part because he ran so well only to fail to win because of pit strategy.
Bell has won at least one race every season since 2021. He won four times last year but hasn’t visited victory lane since winning at Bristol Motor Speedway September 13, 2025.
Of the 13 tracks remaining on the Cup schedule, Bell has won at six—New Hampshire, Bristol, the Charlotte Roval, Phoenix, Martinsville, and Homestead.
It’s perhaps best not to alert Bell that Kevin Harvick had 13 second-place finishes in 2015 (a season in which he won three times).
Bell is not alone among top drivers looking at a fat zero in the wins column. Chris Buescher, Kyle Larson, William Byron, Bubba Wallace, and Austin Cindric currently are qualified for the Chase but also remain winless.
Mike Hembree has covered auto racing for numerous media outlets, including USA Today, NASCAR Scene, NBC Sports, The Greenville News and the SPEED Channel. He has been roaming garage areas and pit roads for decades (although the persistent rumor that he covered the first Indianapolis 500 is not true). Winner of numerous motorsports and other media awards, he also has covered virtually every other major sport. He lives near Gaffney, South Carolina and can be convinced to attend Bruce Springsteen concerts if you have tickets.