Joey Logano was not happy with Christopher Bell after late contact between the two drivers in Sunday's All-Star Race, but Bell didn't view it as anything out of bounds.
"I don't think that I did anything that Joey has not done, and I've seen Joey do much worse," Bell said after winning the $1 million exhibition race. "We will continue on."
Logano had the dominant car during Sunday's race. He used it to lead 139 laps. However, he was unable to hold off Bell on fresher tires with fewer than 10 laps remaining in the race. He had to settle for second place.
The Joe Gibbs Racing driver used his bumper to move Logano out of the bottom groove, and then he used the right side of the No. 20 Toyota to run the No. 22 Ford high. Bell ultimately cleared for the lead and pulled away. He won the All-Star Race for the first time, securing his spot in the exhibition race for the rest of his full-time career.
NEW LEADER: CHRISTOPHER BELL! pic.twitter.com/q3fTUYBOrw
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 19, 2025
"I did all I could do to hold him off, and he got under me and released the brake and gave me no option," an upset Logano said on pit road after the race. "Kind of just ran me up into the wall, and if I could've got to him, he was going around after a move like that.
"I just couldn't get back to him. Just too much to try to make up with the tire deficit. Just frustrated after you lead so many laps and the car is so fast and you don't win, it hurts quite a bit."
Bell moving him out of the groove was not the only reason for Logano's anger on Sunday night. He also expressed the opinion that he fell victim to a new wrinkle for the All-Star Race -- the Promoter's Caution.
This "gimmick," as Logano called it, gave Speedway Motorsports CEO Marcus Smith the option to throw the caution anytime between Lap 100 and Lap 220. He chose to have Michael Waltrip wave the yellow flag on Lap 216 after Kyle Larson pounded the outside wall and bent the No. 5 Chevrolet's toe link.
Logano, Ryan Blaney, Ross Chastain, Carson Hocevar, and Harrison Burton stayed out on older tires after the caution. Bell led the rest of the field down pit road, and he stopped for two fresh tires.
The green flag waved with 27 laps remaining, and Logano jumped back out to the lead. He tried to race away and score his second consecutive All-Star Race win, but his older tires were not an advantage. Bell worked his way from the third row into second place and began challenging for the lead.
Logano continued to aero block while taking away the outside lane, so Bell dove low. He got beside Logano multiple times, and the two drivers made contact. However, Logano continued to clear for the lead exiting the turns.
Ultimately, Bell chose to get more aggressive. He forced his way inside the No. 22 and took the lead with nine laps remaining.
"Whenever I got into second place, I really closed the gap on him quickly, and I thought it was going to be a pretty easy pass," Bell said about his late battle. "Then whenever I got to him, he changed his line around to take my air away and take my line away, and it worked. I got really loose on the outside of him in (Turns) 3 and 4.
"He got away. He changed his line up to block my line, and it hurt my pace for a while. I thought I would be able to get back to him, and I kind of had to regroup for a minute, and then whenever I did get back to him, he was just doing a great job of defensive driving. ...Yeah, I knew once I got position on him, I had to take it at that moment to win the race, and that's what I did."
The strategy helped Bell score his first All-Star Race win, and it secured a financial bonus for his team. It also angered a fellow championship contender.
Will this late-race contact lead to fallout in future events when points or advancing in the playoffs are on the line? It depends on who you ask.
"I just race him the same way," Logano said. "That's all it is. I mean, like I said, we're racing for a million dollars. I get it, but we race each other every week, and we're like elephants, we don't forget anything."