Christopher Bell loves North Wilkesboro Speedway, and Joey Logano hates the “Promoter’s Caution.”
Those were the main takeaways from the top two finishers in an action-packed NASCAR All-Star Race on the 0.625-mile oval Sunday night in North Carolina.
In a slam-bang affair that set a NASCAR All-Star Race record for lead changes, Bell beat Logano — both the reining Cup Series champion and last year’s winner at North Wilkesboro — by less than a second (0.829) to earn his first victory in the exhibition that added no points to his season tally but does come with a $1 million winner’s prize.
Bell, who won three consecutive Cup Series races earlier this season but had a previous best finish of 10th in this event, delivered the third NASCAR All-Star Race win for Joe Gibbs Racing.
“That right there is absolutely incredible,” Bell said after finishing first in his JGR No. 20 Toyota. “North Wilkesboro, best short track on the schedule.”
He also is a fan of Marcus Smith, the president and CEO of Speedway Motorsports, which owns North Wilkesboro Speedway. In a new wrinkle, Smith was allowed to choose when to throw a “Promoter’s Caution” that would bunch the field for a late restart.
Smith sent two-time Daytona 500 winner and Fox Sports personality Michael Waltrip to the flagstand to display the random yellow flag on the 217th lap with Logano’s Team Penske No. 22 Ford in the lead by about a half-second over Bell.
Logano, whose 2024 Cup Series championship was the third of his career, elected to stay on track rather than pit during the caution, and the decision proved costly. Bell pitted for two fresh tires, restarted in sixth and needed only five laps to catch Logano. After a battle for first that lasted a dozen laps, Bell took the lead for good on 241 of 250.
“I’m pissed off right now,” said Logano, who led a race-high 139 laps. “Just dang it, we had the fastest car. I’m trying to choose my words correctly on the caution situation. Obviously, I got bit by it, so I am the one frustrated.”
It was a stark turnaround for Logano, who recently said he supported the “Promoter’s Caution” because “the All-Star Race presents the opportunity to try things outside of the box.” But he was questioning its validity after Sunday’s race.
“Yeah, I’m all about no gimmicks with the caution,” Logano said. “I am all about that. Me and Marcus Smith aren’t seeing eye to eye right now, OK? I’ve got to have a word with him.”
The top five was completed by a trio of Chevrolet drivers: Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain and Hendrick Motorsports teammates Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott.
The “Promoter’s Caution” was introduced to guarantee an exciting finish, but the race hardly needed much help this year.
After lackluster showings in the first two outings at North Wilkesboro, the race delivered much more action in its third year on a track that was once a regular NASCAR stop but had fallen into disrepair before its current revival. There were 18 lead changes, breaking the mark of 13 (set in 2016 at Charlotte Motor Speedway) for the most in the event’s 41-year history.
Pole-sitter Brad Keselowski of RFK Racing and Logano traded the lead twice in the first 10 laps and often ran side by side for the lead. There were six leaders and 10 lead changes in the first half of the race, which topped the total number of leaders (four) and lead changes (five) in the past two All-Star Races combined.
After leading 62 laps, Keselowski’s bid for his first All-Star Race victory ended with the driver-owner’s crash on the 177th lap.
Earlier in the evening, Carson Hocevar capitalized on pit strategy to lead the final 46 laps of the All-Star Open, with the win advancing him into the All-Star Race.
Runner-up John Hunter Nemechek also advanced to the main event by finishing second in the 100-lap warmup race. Noah Gragson won an online fan vote to earn the final transfer spot to the All-Star Race, which had a field of 23 after the trio of Sunday additions.
All-Star Open pole-sitter Shane van Gisbergen finished 13th after leading the first 54 laps. The New Zealand native, who is in his first full Cup Series season after winning three Supercars Championship titles in Australia, fell from first to sixth on a four-tire pit stop during the halfway caution.
“I don’t know whether to smile or cry,” said van Gisbergen, who is ranked 35th in the points standings with one top-10 result this season for Trackhouse. “It’s been a dismal year for us, but I feel like we’re getting better every week. This shows it.”
The All-Star Race winner’s share has been $1 million since the 2003 event, and some drivers have grumbled that an increase for inflation is well overdue.
“I definitely think it should get raised,” 2023 Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney, who drives for Team Penske, said last week. “That’s the only thing about the All-Star Race I’d probably change. I don’t want to get greedy, but I think you can raise it to $3 million.”
Bubba Wallace, who drives for 23XI Racing, said he’d suggest $5 million but would be good for a bump to $3 million.
“They’ve got more TV money, so why not,” Wallace said, referring to NASCAR’s media rights increasing to $1.1 billion annually in a deal starting this year.
With the regular season already halfway over, next weekend marks a return to points racing in a big way.
It’s the Coca-Cola 600, the longest race of the season, at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Bell won last year’s race, which was shortened from 600 to 374 miles by rain.
Kyle Larson missed the 2024 race after arriving late because the Indianapolis 500 was delayed by rain. The Hendrick star again will attempt to become the fifth driver to complete the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 on the same day.