JGR driver Ty Gibbs is actively on the hunt for his first Cup Series win. One could say that the youngster has been rather unlucky in this chase so far. He has secured nine top-10 finishes and five top-5 finishes this season but hasn’t yet pushed that extra button to reach victory lane. As he figures things out, what he isn’t counting on is the support of his teammates.
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Driving alongside Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr., Gibbs has a giant resource of knowledge and experience that he could tap into should he choose to do so. But from his point-of-view, the veterans are as much his competition as any of the other drivers out there. However, that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t consider himself to be lucky to be with them or that he doesn’t take the occasional two cents from them.
He told the press in Pocono, “I don’t really talk to them before the races at the track unless I have something to talk about in the meetings. I’ve always appreciated the teammates I’ve gotten to be with and there are a lot of great people, luckily. It’s been a lot of fun. Yeah, I talk to my teammates here casually. But not a whole lot as much as I used to do when I was completely young.”
Gibbs has won pole position for Sunday’s race at the Pocono Raceway. Familiar faces will be around with Truex Jr. starting in third place and Hamlin in fourth. The youngster turned a lap at 170.039 miles per hour to secure the position in the No. 54 Toyota Camry XSE. Interestingly, Pocono was where he made his Cup Series start. To secure his first win there will bring things a full circle.
Martin Truex Jr. takes pride in the rise of Ty Gibbs
44-year-old Truex Jr. has always been a staunch supporter and mentor for Gibbs. He heaped praise on the young driver back in March applauding him for his strong attitude to speak up in team meetings. He also prophesied that he would go on to win many races in the Cup Series over the coming years. After Gibbs won his first pole award in the 2024 Coca-Cola 600, he was once again a proud teammate.
He said in Charlotte, “He’s doing an awesome job. Great kid. Fun to be around and I’ve enjoyed our conversations over the last year or so. He’s really coming into his own man. He’s so good. He’s going to be an amazing driver for a long time. Really proud of him.”
Gibbs will do well to extract as much as he can out of Truex Jr. before the veteran hangs up his boots at the end of the year.
