Courtesy of Townsend Bell
What a rookie season auto racing phenom Jaxon Bell had in the Skip Barber Formula Race Series.
The 2021 Palisades High graduate and the oldest son of Palisades residents Townsend and Heather Bell was able to record six wins and 11 podiums in 16 races, including two victories and three fastest laps in his last four races on the circuit.
In April, Jaxon made his dad (a three-time Top-10 finisher at the Indy 500) very proud with a pair of first-place finishes in his debut April 3-5 at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. Three weeks later Jaxon swept both races at NOLA Motorsports Park in Louisiana. In the third event at Virginia International Raceway he was fourth in the first race and 12th out of 16 drivers in the second. At Road America in Wisconsin Aug. 11-13, Jaxon was third in both races. Several weeks after that the Series shifted to Lime Rock Park where he finished 14th in Race 1 but rebounded to take second place in Race 2.
The former Pali Elementary and Calvary Christian student who grew up playing PPBA baseball and flag football at the Palisades Recreation Center and played football at Pali High, took seventh in the first race and 13th in the second race Oct. 10-11 at Sebring International Raceway in Florida. After qualifying third in the West Coast stop at Weathertech Raceway Laguna Seca near Salinas in early November, Jaxon won Race 1 and took second in Race 2. The final Series stop was Nov. 22-24 at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas and Jaxon was second in Race 1 and first in Race 2.
Overall, Jaxon finished third in the final standings with 437 points behind winner Sebastian Wheldon (456 points) and runner-up Joshua Alianell (440).
As a feather in his cap, Jaxon placed third in Race 2 of the Music City GP in October at Indianapolis Motor Speedway—his first GRCup trophy finish.
After graduating from Pali High, Jaxon drove across the country by himself to get a job in racing. For 18 months he worked for a NASCAR team called Hattori Racing, sweeping floors, cleaning the bathrooms, delivering parts, servicing and cleaning race car parts—whatever they needed him to do.
He relocated to Miami in March to take a job as the simulator racing instructor at The Concours Club, a private member country club 25 minutes outside of South Beach.
Jaxon and his younger brother Jensen grew up near the top of Chautauqua.
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