'IT'S AWESOME'
Gibbs discusses first career Cup Series win at Bristol
Ty Gibbs celebrates after winning the Food City 500 Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Ty Gibbs appears during driver introductions Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway.
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YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEK ON THE NASCAR CIRCUIT
Ty Gibbs has finally found victory lane. On Sunday evening, Gibbs and the No. 54 team for Joe Gibbs Racing won the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. It was the Joe Gibbs Racing driver's first career NASCAR Cup Series victory after struggling to start his tenure in the No. 54 car during the NextGen era.
Following the race, Gibbs spoke to the FOX Sports broadcast about his first career Cup Series victory. It was an emotional victory and Gibbs is happy to finally reach victory lane in the Cup Series.
"Yeah, it's awesome," Gibbs said. "It's awesome to be with great people. To be in this position is great. I'd love for my father to have seen this. I knew he knew it was going to happen and expected it as well. Yeah, it was great day for us. My boys didn't give up. Pit crew is just amazing. This is our family. It's been great. So it's just such great deal. Very honored to be in this situation. Thank you for Monster Energy. Been with me my whole career. Mitch Covington, Dave Gowland, Elton, everybody a part of it. They've been with me since I was a kid. I really appreciate this."
"Honestly, I didn't really know or care if I was going to win or not. I thought the race was awesome. I thought we all put on the racing was great. Feel like it's been us the whole year. I really appreciate always racing Ryan Blaney and [Kyle Larson] too. Those guys always run me real well. We all run together and hard. Hopefully we put a great show on for the fans. Thank you for Team 54, everybody that's a part of this whole deal. What a great day."
Gibbs has been one of the fastest drivers to start the 2026 NASCAR season and a win was definitely around the corner. While the driver of the No. 54 car wasn't the fastest at Bristol, a perfect strategy call put him in victory lane. Now, Gibbs can focus on winning more races and become a dominant driver in the Cup Series.
NASCAR looking at mandatory four-tire pit stops
NASCAR is making changes to fix the fuel-saving concerns on super speedway tracks. Ahead of the NASCAR weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, the sport has shortened the final two stages to 45 laps a piece, ensuring that drivers won't have to pit for fuel. It may not solve the issues in Stage 2, but the drivers should be able to go all out in the final 45 laps.
Following the announcement, NASCAR president Steve O'Donnell joined the Door, Bumper, Clear podcast and discussed the changes for Talladega. O'Donnell also revealed a potential new rule starting in 2027.
"We're not looking at it this year, but for next year, four tires that you got to take with fuel, whatever," O'Donnell said. "We're looking at a lot of those things."
If NASCAR required four-tire pit stops at Talladega and Daytona International Speedway, it would lessen the urgency to save fuel during the race. In 2026, fourtire pit stops take roughly nine to ten seconds with the NextGen car. It remains to be seen what NASCAR changes moving forward, but mandatory four-tire pit stops are on the table.
NASCAR to inspect Larson's, Reddick's cars
NASCAR is performing a deeper inspection process after the Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend. Kyle Larson's No. 5 car for Hendrick Motorsports has been taken to the NASCAR R&D Center for further inspection after Bristol, the sport announced. Larson finished in third place at Bristol for his best finish of the 2026 NASCAR season.
Tyler Reddick's No. 45 car for 23XI Racing has also been taken to the center for further inspection after Reddick finished in fourth place at Bristol after winning four races to start the season. Taking the cars to the R&D Center doesn't automatically mean something is wrong; however, it does heighten the risk of a potential penalty. In the NextGen car era, drivers and teams have received significant penalties when NASCAR takes a car to the R&D Center. There have been several occasions when they have lost over 100 points due to an infraction. Most cars are cleared after going to the R&D Center, but exceptions exist.
Larson and Reddick will likely be OK; however, NASCAR has blasted teams in the past for any wrongdoing.
How to watch NASCAR live at Kansas
NASCAR is ready for the upcoming action at Kansas Speedway, marking the ninth official race weekend of the 2026 season. In 2025, Kyle Larson beat Christopher Bell for his third victory of the year. The NASCAR Cup and O'Reilly Series will be on the track while the Truck Series has an off -weekend. You don't want to miss the action!
NASCAR AdventHealth 400
(All times Eastern)
Friday
7 p.m.: O'Reilly Series Practice (The CW App)
8 p.m.: O'Reilly Series Qualifying (The CW App)
Saturday
4 p.m.: Cup Series Practice (Prime)
5:10 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying (Prime)
7 p.m.: O'Reilly Series Race — Kansas Lottery 300 (The CW)
Sunday
2 p.m.: Cup Series Race — AdventHealth 400 (Fox; Driver Cam on Max).
