He may not have won the race or title, but Christopher Bell was a winner nonetheless at Phoenix

That the versatile 27-year-old driver could race competitively just hours after learning of the death of his boss and one of his chief mentors speaks volumes

While I can empathize with Chase Elliott and Ross Chastain falling short in their bids to win the 2022 NASCAR Cup championship – which ultimately went to Joey Logano for the second time in his career – no one had a more difficult task Sunday at Phoenix Raceway than Christopher Bell.

It's not even debatable. And don’t anyone try.

In my book, even though Bell ultimately finished third in the final playoff standings behind Logano and Ross Chastain, he deserves special commendation for what he did and had to endure.

There was already plenty of pressure on Bell in his bid to win the Cup crown. Twice in the last four races, he did what he had to do – winning races in Hail Mary fashion to advance to the Round of 8 and then, ultimately, the Championship 4 round for Sunday.

But when Bell found out Sunday morning that one of his chief mentors at Joe Gibbs Racing, Coy Gibbs, the team’s chief operating officer, had sadly and tragically passed away in his sleep after son Ty won the Xfinity Series championship on Saturday, that only exponentially added to the pressure Bell was shouldering.

How can you keep your mind on the big prize – the championship – when one of your closest friends within the entire Joe Gibbs Racing organization, not to mention one of the chief individuals who believed in Bell and his talent enough to sign him to JGR, suddenly was gone?

Frankly, if it was me, I likely would have been throwing up all race, just absolutely shattered inside. But to his credit, the 27-year-old Bell compartmentalized what he had to do Sunday while understanding there would be more time to mourn his boss and friend after the season-ending race.

If anything, Bell drove his heart out for his buddy. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, as Bell ultimately finished 10th in Sunday’s race.

“Just from being out and then the wins at Charlotte and Martinsville and all of a sudden you wake up this morning and you are racing for a championship, and you are happy, you are elated and then your world comes crashing down,” Bell said. “Whenever you get news like that, it puts it in perspective that there is more to this than racing.

“The whole Gibbs family is in all of our prayers. I’m thinking of them. Ultimately today, the best car won the championship. He was really strong. Proud of our 20 group though. We fought hard, and at the end of the race – the last pit stop, or what we thought was going to be the last pit stop, we were right there battling for it.

“I’m just proud to be in this position, proud to be at Joe Gibbs Racing and race this No. 20 car. The DeWalt Camry was – we were there, and hopefully, we can come back here next year.”

The lessons Bell learned from Coy Gibbs will be carried for many years to come, so that has to offer some solace to the driver who, potentially, may be the No. 1 pilot for the organization in a few years – and for many years to come.

Don’t forget, Kyle Busch is now gone, having moved to Richard Childress Racing starting in 2023. Denny Hamlin may have 1-2 more seasons left (if he doesn’t move to the team he co-owns with Michael Jordan – 23XI – for a season or two before retiring), and don’t be surprised if Martin Truex Jr. calls it a career after next season (or moves on to another team).

Right now, looking forward, JGR’s future is heavily weighted upon Bell’s shoulders, as well as Ty Gibbs. While there remains some doubt whether the 20-year-old Gibbs is both physically and emotionally ready to compete full-time in the Cup Series (and that has nothing to do with the loss of his father), Bell’s resume, reputation and ability all speak for themselves.

Bell has been compared countless times to Kyle Larson because of his versatility and ability to drive pretty much any type of race car, and that’s one of the highest compliments anyone can pay a driver.

Bell is ready to become a championship contender for many more years to come. He’s not Kyle Busch’s replacement, nor is he the eventual replacement for Hamlin and Truex. Rather, he is who he is, and he’s ready to mix it up with the best of the Cup Series for at least the next decade-plus.

“I feel good about where we are at for sure,” Bell said after Sunday’s race. “I’m hopeful that my group stays the exact same, from mechanics, engineers and obviously (crew chief) Adam Stevens on top of the pit box because I feel like we have a good thing going.

“We feel like we are right there on the brink of being there every week and being a title contender, year-in and year-out. Just really thankful to be here and very, very incredibly saddened by the news today and I’m thinking of the Gibbs family.”

I’ll admit, even though I picked Logano to win Sunday’s race, deep inside, I was pulling for Bell to pull off the upset. While he came up short, that he did what he did under some extremely trying emotional circumstances speaks volumes of who he is and who he will continue to be.

And I wouldn’t be surprised if, somewhere up above, Coy Gibbs is smiling down right now, knowing much of the future of JGR is in good hands with the driver of the No. 20.

Follow Jerry Bonkowski on Twitter @JerryBonkowski