Christopher Bell will pilot the No. 52 truck in place of Stewart Friesen in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Watkins Glen International next weekend, Friesen announced Aug. 2.
Friesen was injured in a crash in the Super DIRTcar Series on Monday, July 28, and suffered fractures to his leg and pelvis. On Thursday, he had a successful surgery to repair the fractures and is set to meet with a physical therapist.
“I want to thank everyone for their outreach and support as I continue to recover,” Friesen said in a release. “I know Christopher will give our truck a great run. We will be watching and cheering the team on this Friday.”
“I was honored to receive the call to run this truck for Stewart, a fellow dirt racer and Toyota teammate, in Watkins Glen,” Bell said. “I’ve spent time with the team these past few days and we are working hard to continue the great season Stewart has had and deliver a great finish for him and his partners.”
Bell has seven career Truck Series victories. His last race was in 2024 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where he finished fifth.
The No. 52 team will continue to contend for the owner’s championship after Friesen won the Michigan International Speedway Truck race in June.
Future drivers will be announced at a later date.
Joy joined Frontstretch in 2019 as a NASCAR DraftKings writer, expanding to news and iRacing coverage in 2020. She's currently an assistant editor and involved with photos, social media and news editing. A California native, Joy was raised watching motorsports and started watching NASCAR extensively in 2001. She earned her B.A. degree in Liberal Studies at California State University Bakersfield in 2010.