Jimmie Johnson has texted Christopher Bell after his 3 victories this season. Bell wants a 4th text

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Jimmie Johnson has texted Christopher Bell after his 3 victories this season. Bell wants a 4th text

2025-03-16 03:29 Last Updated At：03:42

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Christopher Bell sometimes can’t believe seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson even knows Bell exists. And when Bell’s phone lights up with a new text message from the Hall of Famer, he can’t stop himself from freaking out a little bit.

But the texts have come three weeks in a row now — after Bell victories at Atlanta, Circuit of the Americas in Texas and Phoenix — and Bell hopes Johnson hits that send button again Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Bell has the chance to become the first driver since Johnson in 2007 to win four consecutive Cup Series races — an accomplishment that only eight drivers have achieved in the modern era of NASCAR that began in 1972. He starts 13th on Sunday.

“It is still the coolest thing in the world to me that I have Jimmie Johnson in my phone,” Bell said. “He has talked to me, he has sent me a text message after every win so far. I’m still shocked every time I see his name pop up. I respect the heck out of him. It’s an honor to know that he thinks of me after the race to send a text message. That is so cool."

Bell’s three straight wins is the Cup Series’ longest winning streak since Kyle Larson won three in a row twice in 2021, and Bell is the first to do it in NASCAR’s Next Gen car, which was introduced in 2022.

Among those who have accomplished the feat, seven are in NASCAR’s Hall of Fame and six are Cup Series champions.

The drivers who have won four consecutive races in the modern era are Cale Yarborough in 1976, Darrell Waltrip in 1981, Dale Earnhardt in 1987, Harry Gant in 1981, Bill Elliott in 1992, Mark Martin in 1993, Jeff Gordon in 1998 and Johnson 18 years ago.

Bell’s three wins this year tie his career-high victory tallies set in 2022 and matched in 2024, and breaking his season-best mark isn’t out of the question at Las Vegas, where he has five career top-10 finishes in 10 starts and three poles. Bell, in his No. 20 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, was the runner-up in Vegas’ last two fall races.

He is not considering a fourth consecutive victory a lock even as he has dominated the first month of the season.

“One thing is for sure — nothing that has happened the last three weeks means anything for this week,” Bell said. “Everything is still ahead of me and nothing is set, and we have to go out there and perform. This has been a strong track for us in the past, but I’m just trying very hard to not get ahead of myself and understand it is a new week. It’s a different race, and everyone is going to be bringing their best stuff to try to beat me.”

Bell has watched from the sidelines the last few years as longtime dirt rival Larson raced all over the world. Team owner Joe Gibbs had prevented Bell from extracurricular racing. He was admittedly jealous that Larson got to race on dirt while Bell was barred. But the ban was lifted this year and Bell was set to make his debut in the Larson-owned High Limit Racing series this weekend at Las Vegas.

But inclement weather pushed Thursday’s event to Friday, and when that also had to be postponed until Saturday, Bell was officially scratched the lineup. It’s not that Gibbs won’t let him race the night before a Cup Series event — JGR teammate Ty Gibbs still plans to compete in Larson’s race — but Bell and crew chief Adam Stevens came to a "mutual decision" to not run on Saturdays.

“I think some of (the reason) is we are on the West Coast and if I would bang my head up a little bit or crash, it would be harder to get a driver here to fill that void,” Bell said. “I don’t know if it would be different once we get to the East Coast, but as of right now, we are going to stay away from Saturdays. The Gibbs management group, that’s not on them. They are allowing me to pick and choose my races wisely. That is strictly between me and Adam.”

Michael McDowell earned Spire Motorsports its first career Cup Series pole when he took the top qualifying spot in Saturday's session.

McDowell, a former Daytona 500 winner, is in his first season driving for Spire. The team has shown stark improvement with an infusion of cash brought by new majority owner Dan Towriss, who also controls Andretti Global in IndyCar and the Cadillac F1 team set to debut in 2026.

McDowell's qualifying lap in a Chevrolet bested Joey Logano and Austin Cindric in Team Penske Fords. Kyle Busch was fourth in a Chevrolet from Richard Childress Racing and followed by Erik Jones, the highest-qualifying Toyota drivers, for Legacy Motor Club.

Larson (+400) is the BetMGM Sportsbook favorite, followed by Bell (+450). ... Larson is the defending race winner, while Logano won last fall. Logano said the Las Vegas win, which occurred in the third-round opener of the playoffs and pushed him into the championship-deciding race, gave him the momentum to win the title ... The field includes three Las Vegas natives: Kyle Busch, Noah Gragson and Riley Herbst.

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

McLaren's Lando Norris wins wet and wild Australian Grand Prix. Hamilton finishes 10th

2025-03-16 15:15 Last Updated At：15:21

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — McLaren’s Lando Norris has won a chaotic rain-affected Australian Grand Prix, his first at Albert Park, with the Brit just managing to stay ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen following a third safety car late in Sunday's race.

Lewis Hamilton had a miserable Ferrari debut. The seven-time champion finished 10th and was annoyed by constant radio messages from his pit team.

Norris started the season-opening race, Melbourne’s first wet race since 2010, from pole position. But, while he initially came under increasing pressure from Piastri, who set a series of fastest laps until his papaya team told him to hold position, the Australian spun at the penultimate corner on lap 44 as the rain intensified and dropped down the order. A late race fightback helped Piastri recover to take ninth place — including passing Hamilton on the final lap — and two championship points.

Verstappen finished 0.895 of a second behind Norris after starting from third on the grid, and took advantage of Piastri’s misfortune and the final safety car and tire stops. Mercedes’ George Russell closed out the top-three.

“I knew I had a good pace, but I made one mistake in turn six and he got me in the DRS and the DRS around here is probably like a second or something so that allowed it to keep staying within that second,” said Norris, who scored McLaren’s 12th win in Australia to steal the outright record from Ferrari.

“I know what I’m capable of, I know what I can do, but obviously it’s just round one, so we need to go and do it again next weekend and then continue from there. A long season ahead, we’ve just got to keep our head down and keep pushing.”

Williams endured a mix bag, with Alex Albon securing his best result since Abu Dhabi 2020, and new recruit Carlos Sainz – who won here last year driving for Ferrari – out at the final turn on the opening lap.

Mercedes was thrilled to get two cars in the top five, with Russell onto the podium, his first since winning in Las Vegas last year. Rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who replaced Hamilton at the silver squad, showed his class with a superb fightback drive from 16th on the grid, following his Q1 exit, to finish fifth.

Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll also made the best of the chaotic conditions to move up from 13th to sixth, ahead of Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg, bringing home eight points in what has been a difficult weekend for the green team with its car uncompetitive in dry running.

Ferrari is the most successful constructor at the Australian Grand Prix, with 11 wins since its first in 1987, but it will leave Melbourne disappointed with just five points to show after Charles Leclerc finished eighth and Hamilton 10th.

The Scuderia was seen as a potential championship challenger ahead of the season start and has plenty of work to do ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix next week.

The Melbourne race had a thrilling start with Racing Bull’s Isack Hadjar out on the formation lap, and Alpine’s Jack Doohan joined Sainz in crashing out on the opening lap.

There were just 14 finishers, after Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso hit the turn eight barriers on lap 34, while Red Bull’s Liam Lawson and Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto went into the barriers and out of the race 10 laps from home in the treacherously wet conditions.

AP Formula 1: https://apnews.com/hub/formula-one