Bristol Motor Speedway (Bristol, Tennessee) – Finally the child did it. Make that, grandson.
Ty Gibbs, grandson of Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs, won his first Cup race in his 131st start as he led the final 25 laps to earn an overtime victory at Bristol Motor Speedway.
It was the 229th Cup victory for Joe Gibbs Racing, which celebrates its 35th season this year. But it was the first Cup win for a driver named Gibbs.
“It’s a big thing for us (as a family),” Joe Gibbs said in his post-race press conference. “To be able to make Ty go through everything he went through – and he went through a lot. Because it’s hard, it’s hard when you get here. This is the best of the best in the world.”
His 23-year-old grandson won races and championships up to the Cup Series, but had a checkered career at the top level, with two runner-up finishes and 21 top-five finishes over a three-year career.
There have been many challenges on his journey, including the sudden death of his father, Coy Gibbs, on the night of winning the O’Reilly Series championship in November 2022. The fact that he did not reach Victory Lane for a team that has a tradition of winning led some critics to question whether he deserved a ride for the family-owned team.
“I feel like I knew I was capable of doing it,” Ty Gibbs said in his post-race press conference. “It’s obviously about putting it together. We’ve done very well in the past.
“People are attacking me for the position I’m in. It’s fair. I don’t really care. Just keep working hard. I really like racing, so it’s fun.”
Here are my takeaways:
1. Ty Gibbs’ big win
It was a winning drive by Gibbs, who stayed on the old tires and held off Cup champion Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson, who had battled it out with 25 laps remaining (Blaney for four, Larson for two). Blaney led 190 laps; Larson led 284 laps, but Gibbs was leading the race.
Gibbs didn’t just stop him once, he had to do so twice, as a late caution when Kyle Busch replaced Riley Herbst resulted in an overtime restart.
This was a victory amidst controversies. There is currently a lawsuit by the team against former competition director Chris Gabehart.
Gabehardt alleged that there was a different set of rules for Ty Gibbs than other JGR drivers, indicating that Gibbs was not committed.
“People can say whatever they want, say false things,” Ty Gibbs said. “I don’t really have a problem with it. I’m not big on social media. I just love racing cars. I’m in a blessed position to do that.”
Ty Gibbs held off the field at Bristol to earn his first NASCAR Cup Series victory.
2. Proud Coach Joe Gibbs
Joe Gibbs has won Super Bowls as a coach and Cup championships as an owner, but watching his grandson win was a little different. It brought an outpouring of emotion, as both of his sons, who had played roles in the organization’s development, died at the age of 49 (J.D. Gibbs died in 2019).
“Coy, he guided Ty from go-karts to Cup,” Gibbs said. “I know he has a very good awareness of what just happened.
“Then his uncle’s there too, J.D. I think about those two guys, everything they did for the race team, for us as a family. We love it. We love NASCAR.”
Ty Gibbs (left) celebrates achieving his first Cup Series with his grandfather, JGR team owner and legendary NFL coach Joe Gibbs.
3. Big day for Crew Chief Tyler Allen
Gibbs crew chief Tyler Allen started with Gibbs in 2025, and for part of the season, Gabehart sat atop the pit box for races and performed some of the crew chief duties.
Allen and Ty formed a strong bond last season. And it was Allen’s strategy of leaving Gibbs on the old tires that led to the victory.
“We were focused on building the program,” Allen said in his post-race press conference. “It wasn’t going to be something that got better right away. I’m a young crew chief. He’s a young driver. The team (2025) had a little bit of a mess at the beginning, but we’ve been building.
“It started to show at the end of last year, in the last eight races. This (season) has created confidence in all of us, especially in the box, in Ty in the car, that we can perform at the level at which JGR should perform.
“So it’s great to get this win.”
Tyler Allen and Ty Gibbs got their first Crew Chief-driver win at the spring race at Bristol.
4. Bowman returns end early
The start of the race was also notable, as it signaled the return of Alex Bowman in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 car.
Bowman missed four races due to vertigo, which forced him to exit the car during a race at the Circuit of the Americas last month. He was collected in a wreck that was started by Shane van Gisbergen’s spin.
Overall his day was not good.
“We performed really poorly, but at the same time, it’s good to get back driving a race car,” Bowman told me and other reporters after his mandatory checkup at the infield medical center.
“I appreciate everyone’s support. You all know how much I love attention, so I’m glad this week can be over and I can do my thing next week without everyone asking me how I feel.
“But I’m feeling really good and definitely grateful to be back.”
Alex Bowman returned after a four-race absence but his day ended early.
4 ½. what will happen next
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Kansas Speedway, a 1.5-mile track that, in recent years, has featured some of the best racing on an intermediate track.
This will be a good test for Chevrolet to see if they have nailed down that style of track with the new body introduced this season. This is the first intermediate track since Las Vegas four races ago.
Can Gibbs make it two in a row?
“One win doesn’t change my career, not even one bit,” Gibbs said. “I knew I was capable of it. My team, obviously, I know they’re capable of it. … I can win the next five or just win this one and stay long.”
