Watch: Fight Breaks out Between Ty Gibbs and Brad Keselowski’s Crews at Sonoma

Ty Gibbs didn’t mince his words while criticizing the situation that he went through in Sonoma. He was seemingly not in the wrong as people believed that McClurkin pushed his luck and walked a little too far into the pit box, with Brad Keselowski not even close to coming in. Gibbs asserted that whatever events unfolded in the pitlane were well within the rules as they did not require a penalty to either of the parties involved.

Ty Gibbs pointed out that as per the rules he was ahead of Keselowski and would ultimately come in to the pits before the latter. There were orange lines visible in the pit box which the crew members couldn’t come out of until their car was in. If Gibbs were behind the #6 car in the pecking order and if he had pit after him, then the former was bound to steer clear of the orange lines.

Yeah, you know, by NASCAR’s rules, I’m the lead car because I’m the pit box pass where the 6 is, and I’m in front of him as well, We have these orange lines right there as you can see. … Where if I’m behind him, I have to go around those orange lines for it to be a rule, and going in, I have the right of way.

Ty Gibbs told PRN.

Ty Gibbs asserts ‘nothing malicious’ from his side during the pit-lane incident

Ty Gibbs was confident in his driving capabilities as he tried his best to avoid any major collisions with RFK Racing’s crew member. While Gibbs narrowly avoided a massive mishap from happening, things could have turned ugly really quickly if McClurkin had been even slightly ahead. The #54 driver insisted that the crew members sometimes resort to such petty tactics to force a penalty on their rivals on track.

Speaking on the avoided accident, Ty Gibbs noted that the pit members had to stay behind the walls for a reason. However, he explained that they sometimes jumped too soon and pushed their luck when it came to warranting a penalty to other drivers. Hence, Gibbs noted that this was the price that the crew members had to pay if they were going to resort to such tactics. As for the #54 car, he reassured that there was no malicious intent from his side, as he avoided any penalties.

So, you know, they’re on the wall for a reason, they jump for a reason, they kind of get out of the way. And those guys like to push it, and that’s kind of the consequence you pay. So, that’s unfortunate for them that they had a penalty. Nothing malicious, it’s my right of way. 

Ty Gibbs noted.

Regardless of the on-track shenanigans, Ty Gibbs went on to finish in P7 in the race as Brad Keselowski could only finish in P11. As for Gibbs, he will keep up with his impressive performance despite the tough situations on track. The Sonoma incident proves that the 22-year-old isn’t going to back down easily without a fight.