The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series campaign was the start of a new era for Joe Gibbs Racing. To be exact, this was the first time JGR was competing without Kyle Busch in 15 years. During that period, Busch clinched two Cup Series championships for the team and was a strong title contender every year. Sadly for the team, he has since moved on to Richard Childress Racing and is currently thriving over there. Meanwhile, Joe Gibbs Racing has promoted Ty Gibbs to race alongside Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, and Christopher Bell.

Usually, when a rookie driver competes with their experienced peers, the expectations are set low. This is because not all of them are expected to start winning races right off the bat. That is only possible if they are in a top team and are exceptionally talented. Now, Gibbs is a hugely talented driver, and JGR is a top NASCAR team, but is it worth lumping that much pressure on him?

To put things in perspective, this year, Hamlin, Truex Jr, and Bell reached the Playoffs, while the #54 of Gibbs missed out. In spite of that, he still put in some decent performances and even went on to win the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year award.

Ty Gibbs will have to prove himself for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2024

Naturally, he would have been given some leeway in his debut season. After all, it happens to all rookie drivers, as they have to learn the ropes and mistakes will most likely happen. Especially considering that Gibbs was just 20 years old, compared to his older and more experienced teammates. However, when the 2024 season rolls by, he will have nowhere to hide and will be expected to perform.

This is the exact issue that plagued Mick Schumacher in Formula One. In his debut season, he performed pretty well, compared to teammate Nikita Mazepin. However, in the following year, when Kevin Magnussen was roped in, Schumacher was left completely exposed. As a result, he lost his Haas F1 seat and has since been the Mercedes F1 reserve driver. Now we’re not saying that that fate will befall Gibbs. It is just that the pressure will always be on the back of his mind.

It is all the more important for the #54 driver because JGR needs all four drivers to fire on all cylinders. In 2024, Gibbs will be expected to reach the Playoffs and put up a decent challenge. Considering that rivals Hendrick Motorsports will be fired up after poor 2023, Joe Gibbs Racing needs to be on the ball.

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The Joe Gibbs Racing youngster could be a surprise package next season

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There is no question about the driver’s talent since he is the 2022 Xfinity Series champion. In fact, Gibbs was pretty dominant during that year, with seven wins during the season. When he moved up to the Cup Series, his rookie year was relatively solid, with four Top 5 finishes and 10 Top 10 finishes. The icing on the cake was that he even started outperforming some of his teammates, particularly Martin Truex Jr.

In the early part of the 2023 campaign, Ty Gibbs had a fairly slow start. Sure, he had a few Top 10 finishes, but some of them were a bit down to luck. Many of his decent runs came because he took advantage of some opportunities that arose. However, the good news was that, as the season progressed, he drove better and better.

In fact, most of his Top 5 finishes came at tracks where there is more reliance on driver skill. Those tracks were Pocono, Watkins Glen, Bristol, and the Charlotte Roval, and at each of these races, his driver rating was above 110. At Bristol in particular, he even led more than 100 laps and was one of the favorites to win the race. So to answer whether he will be able to fill Kyle Busch’s shoes, he surely can. Well, maybe not as quickly as next year, but the 21-year-old has all the potential in the world.

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