Game, set, match. That is what Christopher Bell might have had in mind while spinning Kyle Busch at COTA. In a nail-biting attempt to snatch the trophy, Bell wanted to neutralize all rivals on the way. Yet he must have suspected an incoming rush of payback from the ‘rowdy’ driver of the RCR No. 8 Chevrolet. Sure enough, Busch bared his teeth to the younger JGR driver post-race.

Yet as time passes, the dust settles. Similarly, the beef that Busch had with Bell also seems to have dissolved.

Kyle Busch gives Bell a breather amidst ongoing COTA tensions

The slice of drama that took place following the COTA race had everybody at the edge of their seats. After getting spun out of the top-five fight on lap 40, Kyle Busch was visibly irked. He walked straight to the No. 20 JGR Chevrolet and confronted the driver standing next to it. Yet Bell, baby-faced as he may be, maintained his composure and let Busch vent his frustration.

A week after this face-off, Christopher Bell has reason to relax as his rival called him up to ease tensions. Talking to Bob Pockrass, Bell said, “I made contact with him and he spun out. So I understand why he’s upset. You know, we had a conversation on Monday. I thought that it went well. I actually called him, and he didn’t answer. And I thought that was gonna be the end of it. And he called me back! So that was really cool that he had the respect towards me to call me back. He didn’t have to do that. So it’s behind us, and whatever happens, moving forward, it is what it is.”

Kyle Busch also made his stance clear about the telephone conversation. Yet it would be fair to say that one can detect lingering bitterness spilling out of Busch’s words. “I mean, just to give more of my side than what I said on pit road, and to have him give a greater understanding and to my objectives and what I’ve got going on versus what he might think that he’s got going on. Think he understood that, and then heard his side of it. Didn’t really believe much into it when I didn’t even give consideration to him making a move, because he was four (car) lengths back, and then all of a sudden, he was there. So like, I knew he was back there, but too far to do anything. And I got hit, so it is what it is.”

The taste of defeat is still bitter in Busch’s mouth, especially because it is mixed with a flavor of betrayal. But more interestingly, Kyle Busch is closer to Bell than this situation would lead you to believe. Besides being a former JGR teammate, Bell happens to be the rowdy driver’s mentee.

Busch has more reason to be mad at Bell

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Christopher Bell ventured into NASCAR’s national series ranks in 2015. And the team that made his dreams come true was Kyle Busch Motorsports. Driving under Kyle Busch in the Craftsman Truck Series, Bell fetched a Truck championship title in 2017. Then the two worked together further at JGR as Bell progressed to Cup. Hence, Busch pointed out it stings more especially because Bell was once his alum.

“Yeah, it’s definitely frustrating, especially when they’re the KBM alums, right?” Busch said. “When you’re racing against guys that have come through KBM, and you’ve helped them along the way, and you feel as though they’re taking that extra 10% rather than giving a little bit out of respect, but everybody’s got their own race out there, and they try to do what they need to do. Obviously, Christopher’s in really good stuff, at a really good place, and he needs to understand that.”

Hopefully, Kyle Busch will sort it out with his former KBM mentee in the long run. For now, let us see how the two race through at the upcoming tracks.

Kyle Busch Could Bring back “Rowdy” as His Frustration With Drivers Reaches Boiling Point