NASCAR’s rules are unforgivable and its punishments severe. When 40 cars run side by side on NASCAR’s ovals, all having the same goal of seizing the win, the chances of contact and on-track skirmishes are very high. The organization does not have much control over what might or might not happen on the track. However, it does have control over something.
NASCAR has a say in creating a level playing field for all teams. In doing so, it does not think twice before punishing a crew member for even slight carelessness or mishandling. Unfortunately for Joe Gibbs Racing, Ty Gibbs’s #54 team recently suffered an issue for which NASCAR suspended two of its crew members for two races. However, Joe Gibbs has already arranged for replacements.
Joe Gibbs has his back-up plan sorted
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Each crew member in the number #54 team, or any team for that matter, is important for the smooth functioning of the car during the races. After all, it’s a team and every member of the team has to carry out their duty with precision for the team to be successful. The outcome could be failure or success, but the responsibility is collective.
With two of its crew members out, one would perhaps think Joe Gibbs might be in a tight situation. But the 82-year-old team owner has been running a Cup team for over three decades now and for him, getting a substitute for almost anyone on the team is not an uphill task.
According to a recent tweet by renowned journalist Bob Pockrass, Mr Gibbs has leased out two of his own crew members to Legacy Motor Club in exchange for two of theirs. Pockrass tweeted, “With two crew members suspended for a wheel coming off, Ty Gibbs gets tire changer Thomas Hatcher and jack Nate McBride from Erik Jones team (JGR leases crews to Legacy).”
As for Legacy Motor Club’s #43 team, Pockrass added, “Jones gets JGR backups David O?Dell on jack and Austin Maloney tire changer. Both have done several races.”
With two crew members suspended for a wheel coming off, Ty Gibbs gets tire changer Thomas Hatcher and jack Nate McBride from Erik Jones team (JGR leases crews to Legacy); Jones gets JGR backups David O’Dell on jack and Austin Maloney tire changer. Both have done several races.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) October 19, 2023
Despite his grandson’s bleak outing at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he finished P34, it seems like Joe Gibbs remains unstirred as ever as he got subs for his #54 team for the next race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. However, it will take a while for Ty to get over the incident that cost him dearly in Vegas.
Watch this story: Martin Truex Jr. Criticizes Joe Gibbs Crew in Recent Interview
A bad day for Ty Gibbs, all thanks to NASCAR’s strict standards
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The #54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry rammed into the wall on Lap 216 of the 267-lap-long South Point 400 last Sunday. As a result, he lost his right front wheel as he attempted to limp around the track. Thankfully, Gibbs was unharmed and the rolling wheel did not hit anyone else on the track.
NASCAR held him back over the duration of 2 entire laps as per sections 8.8.10.4.A & C of NASCAR’s Rule Book on account of a loss or separation of an improperly installed tire/wheel from the vehicle during the event.
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Unfortunately for Ty Gibbs, he had to settle for a 34th-place finish in the 36-car field. For Ty, it could come off as a disadvantage with two of the people he was used to working with, ousted from the team. But let’s hope Jimmie Johnson‘s staff does a better job than Joe Gibbs’s. Although he is not in the playoffs, Gibbs is fighting for points and experience. Only time will tell if this penalty will prove detrimental to his career.