“I’ve actually asked Adam that because I got a little concerned about it a couple of weeks ago.” Christopher Bell’s concerns revolved around his team’s playoff chances in 2025. That is understandable, as Bell has not won a points race since he won the non-points All-Star Race in May. He has also led double-digit laps in just two of the past 20 races. Besides faint glimmers of hope like runner-up finishes at Mexico City and Watkins Glen, Bell has mostly netted lackluster results outside the top 15.

Hence, the No. 5 seed for the 2025 Cup Series playoffs needs to get on a war footing. And Christopher Bell is confident in his team’s capability to push him through this challenge. For over two decades, Joe Gibbs Racing has been a top-tier Cup team – and Bell intends to rely on its age-old ability to survive NASCAR’s toughest situations.

Christopher Bell reveals his trump card

The No. 20 JGR Toyota team was absolutely on fire in February this year. Christopher Bell locked himself into the playoffs by just the second race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He followed that up with wins at Phoenix and COTA in a jaw-dropping streak. While this set the stage for a magnificent championship ambition, Bell’s subsequent 22-race slump is also prominent. Bell made a faulty pit stop mistake in the 2021 playoffs, but he reached the final four in the first two years since Next-Gen debuted. In 2024, however, we all saw how NASCAR penalized his ‘wall ride’ in Martinsville. However, where there is a will, there is a way. And Bell finds his will in the heart of Joe Gibbs Racing.

In a media availability for the Cup Series playoffs, Christopher Bell revealed JGR’s old trick. The team strikes when fans least expect it to, and Bell feels confident about a deep playoff run because of that. He elaborated on his team’s strategy: “In my team, what I’ve learned from them in the last couple of years is that they just do an excellent job of being the best when it matters the most. Through a number of years now, we’ve come off a kind of slump leading into the playoffs. And then all of a sudden, we go there, we have our best car performance, our best speed. And I feel confident in it, again.”

The optimism also stems from the racetracks in the playoffs. Christopher Bell shines most on low-banked, small ovals like New Hampshire and Gateway, both slotted into the playoffs. What is more, 2025 marks the last season for Phoenix, where Bell won this year, to host the championship race before NASCAR adopts the rotational format. So Bell knows that the chance is ripe for him to finally grab a Cup Series title. “I think this is probably our best year so far for a championship, just the way the schedule lays out. We know that,” Bell explained. “Adam (Stevens, crew chief) knows that. We are ready to take it to them.”

While Christopher Bell slips into battle gear for the playoffs, his teammate is also doing the same.

A season rivaling his previous ones

At this time last year, Chase Briscoe was swimming in uncertainty. He used to drive for Stewart-Haas Racing, which broke up by the end of the 2024 Cup Series season. In his first four full-time seasons in the Cup Series, Briscoe made the playoffs twice, finishing a career-best ninth in 2022 and 14th in 2024. But for the first time in his career, Briscoe is legitimately contending for a championship. Being surrounded by star-studded teammates has done the trick. Briscoe has one win (Pocono), along with career single-season highs in top-fives (10) and top-10s (12), along with pole positions (6, including the season-opening Daytona 500).

During the NASCAR Playoffs Media Day, Chase Briscoe expressed his enthusiasm. “I was telling my wife, this is really the first time I have legitimately thought I could win a Cup championship.” Setting his sights on the Championship 4 round, he believes his goal is possible with the help of JGR. Briscoe continued, “Now, not to say I’m the favorite by any means, but I feel like I have a legitimate chance to go do it. It definitely feels different this time around, just knowing you have a shot. I would say this playoffs just feel different because of that.”

Clearly, Joe Gibbs Racing drivers are rolling up their sleeves for a showdown in the playoffs. Be it Christopher Bell or Chase Briscoe, we cannot wait to see how they perform.