Christopher Bell wins Cup Series race at Charlotte Roval

CONCORD, N.C. — After an afternoon of racing that was less than exhilarating, the final laps of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway redefined the meaning of chaos.

With some drivers racing for the win and others chasing a spot in the next round of the playoffs, much of the field was involved in one or more wrecks in the final six to eight laps before a charging Christopher Bell emerged with the win.

Bell, winning for the second time this year, picked up fresh tires on a late-race pit stop in an almost desperate shot at winning the race — at that point his only chance to advance to the Round of 8. He zoomed through the field and won the race by 1.7 seconds over Kevin Harvick.

“I was the first one on new tires,” Bell told NBC Sports’ Marty Snider. “I guess we’ll roll the dice and see what happens. When I got into Turn 1, my spotter did amazing job. They all started wrecking. That kept me out of the junk in Turn 1.”

Bell’s surge was matched by that of Chase Briscoe, who charged forward over the final overtime laps to finish ninth and slip into the Round of 8.

Chase Elliott, shooting for a second straight win, had a four-second lead over AJ Allmendinger with six laps remaining when the caution flew because of debris — a sponsor sign fell off a wall in Turn 6 — on the track. That bunched the field for the closing miles.

Harvick moved to the front, and Elliott spun out after contact with Tyler Reddick as they raced for second place. Harvick pushed AJ Allmendinger aside for position.

With two laps to go, the field slowed again — and was eventually halted under the red flag — when several cars ran over a piece of turn siding and dislodged it.

In only a few minutes, a race that had seen lap