Chase Briscoe looking to avoid sophomore slump at Joe Gibbs Racing

One of the biggest surprises of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season was the ascension of Chase Briscoe at Joe Gibbs Racing. 

In his first season at JGR, Briscoe, crew chief James Small and the No. 19 team turned into a title threat, with Briscoe winning three races and making the Championship 4 after a win at Talladega. 

As Briscoe prepares for his sixth Cup Series season and his second with JGR, he's looking to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump. 

How sophomore slump has impacted previous JGR drivers

There's no concrete reason to believe that Briscoe will suffer a major drop-off in performance in 2026. With a year of chemistry built with Small and what has to be a high confidence level, Briscoe should be in the mix for race wins out of the gate in 2026. 

But the sophomore slump has bitten several of his past and present JGR peers. 

Martin Truex Jr. moved to JGR in 2019 after spending the previous five seasons with Furniture Row Racing. Truex Jr. made the Championship 4 in 2019, winning seven races and finishing runner-up in the standings to Kyle Busch. But in 2020, he only visited victory lane once and was eliminated in the Round of 8.

Busch joined JGR in 2008 after spending the first three years of his career with Hendrick Motorsports. After winning eight races in 2008, he won four in 2009 but missed the Chase for the Sprint Cup and scored only 13 top 10 finishes. 

Christopher Bell, who remains one of Briscoe's teammates at JGR, came over in 2021 after racing for Leavine Family Racing during his rookie year in 2020. Interestingly enough, Bell actually had a better sophomore campaign driving the iconic No. 20, winning three races and making the Championship 4 in 2022 after winning only one race in 2021. 

If Briscoe can avoid the sophomore slump, it wouldn't be at all surprising if he's a championship threat throughout the 2026 season.