Everyone’s feeling bad about Hamlin’s loss, but an equally upset result was faced by his teammate Christopher Bell. Consistently running in top five only to finish P20, Bell’s performance was perhaps the most underrated amongst the top finishers. He remained in race-winning contention, even to the final restart, but then a string of unfortunate circumstances threw him under the bus… or the track. And as he hastily walked away from the track after the race ended, he didn’t sugarcoat his reactions.

Christopher Bell drops a two-word reaction to his Kansas run

“It sucks,” Bell said when asked about the race finish. And it was quite apparent why he remained so unfiltered even after the race finished. He was close to winning, making the most of the Toyota pace that he had under him. The OEM once again dominated the race, but it was Tyler Reddick who won the challenge, making a final move on Kyle Larson on the final lap.

When the overtime started, Bell was lingering on the second row with Hamlin. Reddick from the front row got a bit slower and got a nudge from the #11. That nudge made him push Bell on the outside wall from there on, Bell lost control of what could’ve been a top-5 finish.

He somehow managed to continue, but eventually lost control and fell to the back of the field, finishing only 20 despite the amazing pace he had throughout the day. But more than that, he missed out on a massive race win, which would have been his first this season.

However, it was tough to say if Reddick was at fault there when he made contact with Bell. Even the latter commented (right after the race) that he wasn’t completely aware of what had happened on the track, as he had yet to watch the replay. But there was a lot that went into it. Reddick later addressed the incident.

Tyler Reddick on Bell’s final contact

Although a strong performer throughout the day, the race winner Tyler Reddick, who led just 10 laps, did not seem to be winning, especially after he tapped the wall and ran out of fuel on his final run against Denny Hamlin. The latter was on the way to victory until the final caution that sent the race into overtime.

Reddick then managed to beat both Hamlin and Larson to win. While this was unexpected, the only driver he did not have to battle was Bell. In fact, he even commented on his situation after the race ended.

“I mean, first off, I feel like I have to say obviously just for how I feel. I never like being on the inside of it—really hate that for Christopher Bell,” he said. “Good, hard racing. The 11 (Hamlin) came up. I mean, I took off tight. Not thrilled I got Christopher there. I hate that for him because he was having a good, solid day.”

While Reddick seemed to be summing up the entire Christopher Bell situation under “hard racing,” it was an extremely tough situation for the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing driver. He has managed to be extremely consistent this season, but a race win is still missing. This, compared to his 2025 campaign, is vastly different, considering his three consecutive wins that came early in the year.

However, in a season where multiple race wins will matter, Bell hasn’t even won a single one. But the overall pace that JGR and Toyota have showcased so far, it shouldn’t be too hard for him to clinch a few wins ahead in the season, considering how much better they have been compared to the Chevys.