Denny Hamlin may have won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono on Sunday, but Ty Gibbs was the big story of the day.
The 19-year-old grandson of Joe Gibbs made his Cup Series debut on Sunday. Ty drives the No. 54 car full-time for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Xfinity Series. He got the opportunity to drive the No. 45 for 23XI Racing in place of Kurt Busch after Busch was not cleared to race. Busch crashed in qualifying on Saturday and had concussion symptoms.
Gibbs, who is the points leader in the Xfinity series, was a natural to fill in due to synergies between JGR and 23XI, as well as both Ty and Kurt being sponsored by Monster.
Many wondered what suit Ty would be wearing for the race. It turns out he wore Busch’s suit.
Not only did the suit have Kurt’s Cup Series champion patch on it, but it also said Kurt’s name around the waist.
Ty is 5-foot-7 and around 115 pounds, while Kurt is 5-foot-11 and around 160 pounds. The size difference led many to wonder how Ty fit into Kurt’s suit, but they obviously made it work.
Ty finished 18th in his Cup Series debut. Neither Ty nor Kurt received points for the race, but the 23XI team received owner points.
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