One way to look at Sunday’s final round of the inaugural NASCAR In-Season Challenge: the winner was always going to be named Ty. Another way to look at it: so was the loser.
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Ty Gibbs denied Ty Dillon a five-race sweep and a dream $1 million payday in the 32nd running of the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Gibbs, who was the sixth seed in the Challenge tournament, finished Sunday’s race 21st, but it was enough to beat out Dillon, who finished seven spots and three laps behind in 28th position.
“Super cool. Very honored to be in this position,” Gibbs said. “Thank you to all of NASCAR and TNT Sports for allowing us to be able to do this. It’s awesome to win this and super cool to be in this position.”
Dillon had been the Cinderella story of the Challenge heading into Sunday’s deciding event. He was the 32nd and last seed in the field, yet managed to finish above his opponents in each of the four previous rounds.
“Disappointing, obviously, but things like that happen. You can’t predict everything,” Dillon said. “I think that’s what’s been so cool about this In-Season Challenge for everybody. I just hate that we didn’t get to give him a run for it there.”
Driving the No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet, Dillon was involved in a multi-car bumper-to-bumper crash on a restart on Lap 56 that knocked the nose off his car, which forced him to the pits for repairs and ended his hopes of topping Gibbs.
“If all things are equal (and) we don’t knock the nose off on that restart, [we’re] probably sitting in a good position, put a lot of pressure on him and race him out pretty solid,” Dillon said. “The first half of the race, we were okay, and then we had a bad run there at the end of Stage 1.
“I (thought) we were going to be able to get the car back right and challenge him, but it just didn’t work out that way and it’s disappointing. Something happened where it knocked off all the air duct and pinched off the air so the motor wouldn’t run down the straightaways. Then you are just kind of riding for the rest of the day.”
Winning the Challenge doesn’t mean anything for Gibbs’ playoff hopes. After Sunday’s race, he’s 16th in the standings. But since three drivers below Gibbs have wins, which guarantee playoff spots, he currently ranks 19th in eligibility.
If the playoffs were to start now, Gibbs and his No. 54 Toyota would not make the field. The only way it appears likely that Gibbs will make the playoffs is by winning one of the four remaining regular season races. Likewise for Dillon.
In addition to the $1 million check Gibbs earned for winning the Challenge, he also received a trophy, ring and a wrestler-style champion’s belt. TNT asked Gibbs which was more stressful, winning the Challenge or his Xfinity Series championship in 2022.
“I don’t know. They were both super-stressful,” Gibbs said. “It’s super cool to win it and it’s an honor and I’m very blessed to be in this situation.”
Gibbs proves to be a good sport to Dillon
But Gibbs made a very humble, sportsmanlike gesture to his Challenge opponent. “A million bucks is a lot of money,” Gibbs told TNT Sports. “I’m going to give $10,000 to wherever Ty Dillon wants to choose to give to charity.”
While Dillon was grateful for Gibbs’ generous offer, it didn’t take away the pain of coming so close to a cool million, only to fall agonizingly short.
“It’s painful right now that we didn’t win the whole thing,” Dillon told NASCAR.com. “But it definitely doesn’t overshadow how much this whole run has meant for us and our team, our sponsors. We’re grateful, man. It’s a good boost of energy.
“Hopefully we’ll finish out the year strong (he is currently in 32nd place) because of it. I believe in our team and what the future holds. So today was tough, but you know, this run has been really great and I appreciate it.”
