This article is part of our NASCAR Barometer series.
Christopher Bell won his first NASCAR Cup Series race in his second start for Joe Gibbs Racing in the No. 20 Toyota. It was a wild afternoon with multiple caution cautions, a brief spat of rain and drivers battling for every inch of ground through the field. Bell navigated his way through the chaos, spending the afternoon running inside the top 10 and put his fresher tires to good use in the final laps, chasing down Joey Logano and making the last-lap pass for the win. Bell's victory means the 2021 season has started off with two new first-time winners in its first two races.
While road-course favorite Chase Elliott started the day strongly with a stage win, losing track position and having to work forward in the field proved to be too much to overcome. Many drivers spent the day working their way to the front only to have some sort of issue put them back down the running order. It was a chaotic day that capped off two weeks of unpredictable racing to start the 2021 season. This week, the series heads to more familiar territory with a visit to Homestead-Miami Speedway. Denny Hamlin won the race there last season from pole in dominating fashion, while Kyle Busch took the win the year before.
UPGRADE
Christopher Bell – Bell scored his first career victory Sunday on the Daytona Road Course, completing a sweep of the weekend victories for Toyota. The win was payback to the team who elected
