Brent Crews jumped into the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to replace Christopher Bell during the first caution of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Anduril 250 at Naval Base Coronado.
The initial yellow for cause in the 75-lapper came out for Ricky Stenhouse Jr., whose No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet stalled on track on Lap 12. Bell brought the No. 20 down a closed pit road to make the driver switch.
However, the No. 20 suffered a mechanical failure on Lap 30, ending Crews’ day early.
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Bell, recovering from a fractured wrist suffered two weeks ago after a crash at Michigan International Speedway, was the driver of record and received one point with a 39th-place result after completing a lap around the 3.4-mile street course near San Diego.
Crews, a highly regarded 18-year-old regular in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, registered his first race-day laps in NASCAR Cup Series competition.
Bell, who started 37th in the 39-car field, split time with Crews in Friday’s practice session, saying afterward that his plans to compete in the full 255-mile event were a “game-time decision.”
Crews won the pole position for Saturday’s O’Reilly Series race, leading 11 laps before engine failure halted his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota just 16 laps from the finish.