No. 20 Rheem Toyota News and Notes
Racing in the Commonwealth: With the familiar Rheem colors back on his Camry for the first time since Phoenix, Christopher Bell and the No. 20 Rheem team will make their first of two stops during the 2018 season at Richmond Raceway on Friday night for the ToyotaCare 250. Bell will be making his second-career series start at Richmond this weekend, having started 14th and finishing sixth in his first NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) appearance at Richmond Raceway last September.
School Visit: Prior to hitting the track on Friday, Bell will join fellow Toyota Racing teammate Noah Gragson on Thursday at the Speediatrics Fun Day Festival at Laburnum Elementary School, located near the Richmond Raceway. The event is part of a partnership between Richmond, The NASCAR Foundation, and the Capital Area Health Network to offer area students free health screenings and inspire them to lead a healthy lifestyle.
Bristol Recap: The NXS paid a visit to Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon for the Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 and race seven of the 2018 season. By virtue of their second-place finish in Texas, Bell and his GameStop team were one of four teams eligible for the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash payout at the end of the race. After qualifying third on Saturday morning, Bell and his GameStop/Seagate Game Drive for Xbox team won stage one, but unfortunately on lap 140 Bell and his team were collected in a multi-car accident which ended their day and relegated them to a 29th-place finish.
Joe Gibbs Racing at Richmond: JGR has 90 NXS starts at Richmond Raceway and has earned seven wins, 23 top-five and 43 top-10 finishes. The championship-winning organization has won seven pole awards with an average start of 12.4 an average finish of 15.0.
RACE INFO: The ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway begins at 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday, April 20, 2018. The race will be broadcast live on Fox Sports One, Sirius XM 90, and MRN Radio.
Bell’s Career NASCAR XFINITY Series Stats at Richmond Raceway
- Starts - 1
- Wins - 0
- Top 5 - 0
- Top 10 - 1
- Poles - 0
- Laps Led - 0
- Avg. Start - 14.0
- Avg. Finish - 6.0
Bell’s 2018 NASCAR XFINITY Series Season Stats
- Starts - 7
- Wins - 0
- Top 5 - 4
- Top 10 - 4
- Poles - 3
- Laps Led - 72
- Avg. Start - 5.9
- Avg. Finish - 14.3
Bell’s Career NASCAR XFINITY Series Stats
- Starts - 15
- Wins - 1
- Top 5 - 7
- Top 10 - 9
- Poles - 3
- Laps Led - 228
- Avg. Start - 6.0
- Avg. Finish - 12.8
From the Cockpit
Christopher Bell: “I’m excited to get back behind wheel of my Rheem Camry at Richmond. The great thing about the Xfinity Series is that you get to race almost every weekend, so I’m looking forward to putting Bristol behind us and having a strong run on Friday Night. Richmond is a fun place to drive, but it can be tricky to get the car set up just right, but I know (crew chief) Jason (Ratcliff) and the guys will have a great game plan heading into the race. Richmond is also a big weekend for our Toyota Racing Family, so I would like nothing more than to get Rheem and Toyota back in victory lane once again on Friday night.”
Founded in 1925, Rheem is the only manufacturer in the world that produces heating, cooling, water heating, pool/spa heating and commercial refrigeration products. Rheem is headquartered in Atlanta, and it has an international presence in 14 countries. The company’s premium brands include Rheem, Raypak, Ruud, Eemax, Richmond, Aquamax, Solahart and Splendid, as well as commercial refrigeration brands Russell, Witt, ColdZone and Kramer, which are part of the company’s Heat Transfer Products Group (HTPG) division. To learn more, visit www.Rheem.com.
