NASCAR Cup Series regular Christopher Bell finally returned to Victory Lane in the Truck Series after winning Friday’s Tennessee Army National Guard 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Driving for Halmar Friesen Racing, Bell delivered a solid performance in the team’s #62 Toyota and followed it up with a heartfelt message to owner Stewart Friesen.
Making a second appearance for Halmar Friesen Racing in the 2026 Truck Series season, Christopher Bell showed he hadn’t lost his touch in the series, snapping a 3121-day winless drought that dated back to 2017. But beyond the result, it was the emotional significance of the victory that stood out most for the former Truck Series champion.
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In a post-race interview, Bell spoke about the significance of the victory and what it means for owner Stewart Friesen, calling it “special.”
Here’s what the Joe Gibbs Racing star said (via NASCAR.com):
“Oh, man, that was just so awesome to win a truck race. It’s been since 2017 that I’ve won one of these things. It’s a lot of fun racing with this group. I got the unfortunate call last year to drive for Stewart when he was hurt, went up to Watkins Glen and almost got it. They’ve been working really hard to get to Victory Lane. Just so special for me to be able to race with these guys. These wins, they mean a lot to this team, this organization.”
The win marked the eighth career victory for Bell and the fifth for Halmar Friesen Racing in the Truck Series. It also ended a three-race Bristol winning streak for Front Row Motorsports (FRM).
Christopher Bell steals the Bristol Truck win with late-race move
Christopher Bell started 15th and worked his way to move to fifth place by the end of Stage 2. He emerged victorious when he grabbed the lead from Christian Eckes on 188 of the 250 laps and then never looked back to cross the finish line in P1.
The JGR star driver led 63 laps and crossed the finish line by an impressive margin of 0.330 seconds ahead of Chandler Smith to take the checkered flag.
In the post-race interview Bell credited this win to Halmar Friesen Racing and said:
“It’s all about them, not about me. Those guys work really, really hard. They put their heart and soul into this, and to get rewarded, it means a lot to them. That’s what it’s all about. It’s what makes this worth it.”
Christopher Bell now heads to Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series, the Food City 500 at Bristol, which is scheduled to kick off at 3 pm ET.
Edited by Yash Soni
