“I’m very torn on it”: Christopher Bell frustrated with option tires as he bluntly opines on their potential use at Championship 4 race 

Christopher Bell has given his take on the potential use of option tires in future playoff years including the Championship 4 battle at Phoenix Raceway. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver expressed that a racer who "sucked" all race might turn out to be a winner, courtesy of option tires.

The option tires are softer than prime tires and maximize the short-term grip. Thus, the driver can quickly clock high speeds as they gel fast with the underlying asphalt. However, they don't last as long as the prime compound. The option tires are identified by red lettering on the sidewalls, whereas, on the prime tires, it's yellow.

During Dirty Mo Media's Teardown podcast, Jeff Gluck asked Christopher Bell if he would like to see option tires in future playoff years, including the Championship 4 race at Phoenix. Bell expressed that a driver could save the option tires for later use when they pit during a late race caution, and, as a result, emerge with faster tires and possibly dethrone the drivers who were dominant during the race.

"No," Bell opined on option tires making way into the playoff. "What do we want the champion to be? Do we want the champion to be the best car or do we want the champion to be the guy that sucked all race and saved a set of red tires that got the lucky yellow (flag). I'm very torn on it and we're getting further and further away from traditional racing," Bell said.

When Jordan Bianchi asked whether option tires frustrate him, the nine-time Cup Series race winner replied:

"It does, it does."

The option tires debuted in the points-paying race at Richmond Raceway, where Austin Dillon won after controversially sidelining Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin.

Christopher Bell outlines NASCAR's "identity crisis" amid racing and entertainment dilemma

Recently, NASCAR made some changes like adding road courses, bringing Talladega Superspeedway to the Round of 8, and removing Watkins Glen International from the playoffs, among others, in their 2025 Cup Series schedule. It received varied reactions from the NASCAR community.

The American Stock Car Racing League's decisions have led to uncertainty about whether they want to promote racing or yearn to grab more eyeballs for increased revenue at the cost of pure racing.

During NASCAR Playoff Media Day with Dirty Mo Media production, Christopher Bell talked about the "identity crisis" the sport's going through and laid out a couple of questions concerning the high-octane sport. He said:

“It just feels like we are in a little bit of an identity crisis, and I can’t, I didn’t… someone else in our industry use that term and I loved it, and I’m like 'That is so true,'" Bell said.

“Are we a racing league and do we want to promote the best teams, the best drivers? Or do we want to be in the entertainment industry and have the most entertaining races?” the #20 Toyota driver questioned.

Bell agreed that moving the Talladega race to the Round of 8 is 'cringe'.