Bristol Motor Speedway (Bristol, Tenn.) — The kid finally did it. Make that, the grandkid.
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 capture an overtime victory at Bristol Motor Speedway.
It was the 229th Cup victory for Joe Gibbs Racing, which is celebrating its 35th season this year. But it was the first Cup victory by a driver named Gibbs.
“It’s a huge deal for us [as a family],” Joe Gibbs said in his post-race news conference. “To have Ty be able to go through everything that he went through — and he went through a lot. Because this is tough, this is tough when you get up here. It’s the best of the best in the world.”
His 23-year-old grandson had won races and championships on the way up to the Cup Series but has had a roller-coaster, three-plus-year career at the top level, with two runner-up finishes and 21 top-five finishes.
His journey has had its challenges, including his father, Coy Gibbs, dying suddenly the night he won the O’Reilly Series championship in November 2022. The fact he hasn’t gotten into Victory Lane for a team that has a tradition of winning had some critics questioning 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 news conference. “It’s obviously about putting it together. We’ve had great runs in the past.
“People are going to hammer me on my position I’m in. That’s fair. I don’t really care. Just keep working hard. I really love racing, so it’s fun.”
Here are my takeaways:
1. Big Win For Ty Gibbs
It was a winning drive by Gibbs, who stayed out on old tires and held off Cup champions Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson, who had pitted with 25 laps remaining (Blaney for four, Larson for two). Blaney had led 190 laps; Larson led 284 laps, but Gibbs had been running near the front.
Gibbs didn’t just hold them off one time, he had to do it twice, as a late caution when Kyle Busch turned Riley Herbst resulted in an overtime restart.
It was a win that came amid controversy. There’s currently a lawsuit by the team against former competition director Chris Gabehart.
Gabehart has alleged that there were a different set of rules for Ty Gibbs than for the other JGR drivers, indicating that Gibbs was not committed.
“People can say what they want, can say false things,” Ty Gibbs said. “I don’t really have an issue with it. I’m not big on social media. I just love racing cars. I’m in a blessed position to do this.”
Ty Gibbs held off the field at Bristol to get his very 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 it was a little bit different to see his grandson win. It brought a wave of emotions, as both of his sons who had played roles in the growth of the organization, died at age 49 (J.D. Gibbs died in 2019).
“Coy, he guided Ty all the way from go-karts to Cup,” Gibbs said. “I know he’s got a great view of what just happened.
“Then his uncle is there, too, J.D. I think about those two guys, everything they did for the race team, for us as a family. We love this. We love NASCAR.”
Ty Gibbs (left) celebrates getting his first Cup Series with his grandfather, JGR team owner and legendary NFL coach Joe Gibbs.
3. Huge 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 calling the race and performing some of the crew chief duties.
Allen and Ty formed a strong bond last season. And it was Allen’s strategy to leave Gibbs out on old tires that led to the win.
“We were focused on building the program,” Allen said in his post-race news conference. “It wasn’t going to be something that got better immediately. I’m a young crew chief. He’s a young driver. The team was a little bit of mess at the beginning of [2025], but we were building.
“That started to show up at the end of last year, the last eight races or so. This [season] has built confidence in all of us, me especially on the box, Ty in the car, that we can perform at the level that JGR should perform at.
“So to get this win is pretty cool.”
Tyler Allen and Ty Gibbs got their first crew chief-driver win at Bristol’s spring race.
4. Bowman Return Ends Early
The start of the race was also notable, as it signaled the return of Alex Bowman to the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 car.
Bowman had missed four races because of vertigo, which caused him to get out of the car during the race at Circuit of the Americas last month. He was collected in a wreck that started when Shane van Gisbergen spun.
He didn’t have a good day overall.
“We just performed really poorly, but at the same time, it’s nice to be back driving a race car,” Bowman told me and other reporters after his mandatory check at the infield medical center.
“I appreciate everybody’s support. You guys all know how much I love attention, so I’m glad this week can be over with and I can just go do my job next week without everybody asking me how I feel.
“But I feel really good and definitely thankful to be back.”
Alex Bowman returned after a four-race absence but his day ended early.
4 ½. What’s 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 at the intermediate tracks.
It will be a good test of the Chevrolets to see if they have made gains on that style of track with the new body introduced this season. It is the first intermediate track since Las Vegas, which was four races ago.
Can Gibbs make it two in a row?
“One win doesn’t change my career, not one bit,” Gibbs said. “I knew I was capable of it. My team, obviously, I know they’re capable of it. … I could win the next five or just win this one and be done for a long time.”
