Ty Gibbs: 2025 NASCAR Driver Profile

A fresh face on the pit box shouldn’t be a concern for Gibbs heading into his third year, nor should the fact he still has a goose egg in the win column. It’s taken anywhere from three to five years for even the hottest prospects to start forging their victorious paths in Cup, and with 87 starts under his belt, Gibbs isn’t far behind the learning curve champions Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott endured. Neither driver found victory lane until their 99th start.

At age 22, Gibbs is still a developing talent. The most promising sign he showed last year was significant improvement over year one, including 417 laps out front, an increase of over 300 circuits. Gibbs has now led a total of 531 laps in his Cup career, the third-most laps led of any Cup driver without a win, trailing Mike Skinner (1,029) and Joe Ruttman (807).

Ty Gibbs career stats

The time up front will eventually result in one, and the best thing Gibbs can do is keep putting himself in position to capitalize on opportunities presented. He’ll undoubtedly improve on closing out races while gaining more experience. The wild card in 2025 is how much Gibbs assumes additional behind-the-scenes responsibility. The heir apparent to JGR, grandfather Joe Gibbs turns 85 this year and may begin a transition sooner rather than later.

Gibbs’ biggest challenge is establishing a baseline of consistency. For every race that the youngster contended for a win or top 5 last year, there was a race where he was a complete no-show.

That said, Gibbs continues to maintain a relatively clean track record in Cup despite some polarizing antics in the Xfinity Series, and his uptick in performance is noticeable with each season he hits the track. If he can continue raising the floor, the future looks promising and Gibbs’ current trajectory leaves him primed for a win, sooner rather than later.

The Ty Gibbs file

Car: No. 54 Toyota

Team: Joe Gibbs Racing

Crew chief: Tyler Allen

Years with current team: 3

Best points finish: 15 (2024)

Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina

Born: Oct. 4, 2002

Scouting report

Anonymous takes from drivers, crew chiefs, and assorted industry insiders:

Ty Gibbs is on the precipice of breaking through, and most of his peers and overseers believe he is going to be good, but there are concerns about how Joe Gibbs Racing views his future compared to his present.

A rival team owner explains, “There are so many sides to him. He’s at a pivotal moment, but five years (into his career) too soon. He is clearly an outstanding racecar driver and I don’t think anyone would say he isn’t. But they are bending that entire organization – one that has Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell – for Ty and his team. They didn’t take Chris Gabehart (crew chief) away (from Hamlin) to make the whole company better, they did it to make Ty better and now he has even more resources so it’s time to go win. They just need to make sure they don’t break the entire company trying to build him up.”

His peers sometimes feel like “he doesn’t race you with respect,” as one put it, but is completely different outside of the car. Another differs, saying, “He is a really talented racecar driver, and has really matured behind the wheel. He focuses on just racing the racetrack and not the other guys. He doesn’t do anything bad or stupid. He made up a lot of ground this past year. He does a really solid job.”