Denny Hamlin and Chris Gabehart formed one of the best driver/crew chief duos in the NASCAR Cup Series. Starting in 2019, they added two Daytona 500 triumphs, a Southern 500, and 22 Cup Series wins in total. However, since the launch of the Next Gen race car, the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team has failed to reach the championship race. Something they did on a regular basis back during the first three seasons together.
So, Coach Gibbs had to make a tough call and brought in Chris Gayle to replace Gabehart as the new crew chief for the #11 team. The good thing was that Hamlin’s former chief got promoted to the role of competition director. And this new role might transform the way JGR cars perform on the racetrack. Christopher Bell, in particular, is keen to partner with Gabehart and work on his shortcomings.
Christopher Bell will look to leverage Gabehart’s expertise in 2025
Gabehart has been with Joe Gibbs Racing ever since he started as a race engineer for the Cup Series program and crew chief at the Xfinity Series level. 2016 was his first full season as the crew chief with Erik Jones and came oh so close to winning the title. He would then work with drivers like Daniel Suarez, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Benjamin, and Ryan Preece as Jones moved up to the Cup Series. In 2019, Gabehart was roped in as Hamlin’s crew chief on the No. 11 team and since then he’s grown to be an influential figure in the Cup Series garage.
Hardcore Hamlin and #11 team fans were fuming with JGR’s decision to split the two. Apart from Gabehart’s technical expertise, the two shared a good bond and chemistry. But, luckily, the veteran crew chief is within the JGR stable; the only difference is that he won’t be tunnel-visioned on just one team. “I felt like he was an amazing crew chief, a super smart individual, and I’m excited about him in his new role. Because I think he really can specifically help the 20 car and overall help the company going to where all four of our cars will be performing better.” Christopher Bell said this about Gabehart in an interview with Bob Pockrass.
In fact, Bell is excited to work with JGR’s new competition director as he will be able to share secret notes with him. The #11 team is strong on short tracks and intermediates like Kansas, Charlotte, and Las Vegas. “So whenever you’re on the same team and you have different door numbers on the car, like you’re only focused on your car itself. I use Kansas for example; I think Denny’s been one of the best cars, if not the best car, for a number of years since Next Gen’s been out, and the 20 has just always been a little bit behind… Before he was only focused on 11; now he’s going to be more on all the cars.”
Christopher Bell says he already has had several conversations with Chris Gabehart in Gabehart’s new role as JGR competition director. Bell explains where he thinks Gabehart will make an impact: @NASCARONFOX pic.twitter.com/6v2B4V0k8s
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) January 29, 2025
Well, if we are to reflect on Bell’s 2024 campaign, it was relatively successful. If we are to cut out the controversial race at Martinsville, who knows, he might have made the championship race in Phoenix for the third straight year. Apart from Kyle Larson, he was the one driver that stayed consistent throughout the year. But race manipulation and a hail-melon attempt in Martinsville put a halt to championship aspirations.
Bell’s 2024 NASCAR season review
The 2024 Cup Series season was the first one where Bell managed to score multiple race wins during the regular season. He won races at Phoenix Raceway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and New Hampshire Speedway. All of these wins came during the first half of the season, but by no means did he have a dry spell going into the playoffs.
He had two top 5 finishes in the first round, two runner-up finishes at Charlotte Roval and Las Vegas, and was followed by two top 5 runs again at Homestead and Phoenix. If we are to take out Watkins Glen and Martinsville spring races, Bell finished P7 or better in all his playoff races. This goes to show just how dominant he was, but the lack of wins came to bite him and forced him to pull off a hail-melon move in the do-or-die race at Martinsville Speedway.
If there’s one driver from JGR that can lead them back to championship glory, it is Christopher Bell. While Denny Hamlin fans might not agree on this, he has been the most consistent driver in the Next Gen era. And that does add weight to his tag of championship-contending driver for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series.
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