Kyle Petty calls out Christopher Bell amid flood of runner-up finishes

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kyle Petty calls out Christopher Bell amid flood of runner-up finishes: 'When's he going to pass a leader?'

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Aug 12, 2026 10:54 PM ET

Christopher Bell has seven runner-up finishes through the first 23 races of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season.

The Norman, Oklahoma, native has checked into the Heartbreak Hotel more times this year than many drivers do in a decade. His winless drought is now 30 races stretching back to September 2025.

On NASCAR's "Inside the Race," Kyle Petty called out Bell for being unable to finish races.

"When's he going to pass a leader?" Petty asked. "That's my point. He runs them down. We've seen him run them down in multiple races."

If you go to the well and it’s dry… DON’T go back to that same move!

Christopher Bell continues to struggle to pull away at the end of races, which is why he’s finished runner up 7 times!

Stay tuned for a new Inside the Race, dropping later today! pic.twitter.com/jTHH2N7QEx
— Kyle Petty (@kylepetty) August 10, 2026

Iowa brought more heartbreak for Christopher Bell

Bell finished second again at Iowa Speedway on Aug. 9 after also doing so in the previous Cup race at Indianapolis on July 26. Bell has three second-place results in the last four races.

In the seven races Bell has finished second in this season, he's led a total of 363 laps, including a season-high 176 at Phoenix and 108 at Iowa. That accounts for 68.5 percent of the 530 circuits he's paced this year.

Petty was particularly critical of the race Bell raced at Iowa while contending for the win with eventual race winner Ty Gibbs. Despite being on Gibbs' back bumper for the final 20 laps, Bell was unable to get around his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate.

"If you go back to the well and it's dry, don't go back to that same move," Petty said. "It's not gonna work, man. I hate to say that, because I think he's an incredible race car driver. But how many times can [crew chief Adam Stevens] put him in a position to win races and you leave the win on the table?"

Bell will look for his first win of the 2026 season in Saturday's Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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