It's time to worry about Ty Gibbs' lack of NASCAR Cup results

The Ty Gibbs hype train that was once full steam ahead has long since derailed. 

Gibbs, who now has three full seasons of NASCAR Cup Series competition and a total of 125 starts under his belt, is still yet to win a Cup Series race. 

The grandson of Joe Gibbs Racing owner Ty Gibbs, it was hardly a surprise that Gibbs had the tools at his disposal to climb his way up the NASCAR ladder. But it's not as if Gibbs being in the Cup Series is a product of nepotism. He won in his NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series debut in 2021, winning 11 races in 51 starts from 2021-22 and the 2022 championship. 

He was called up to full-time Cup Series competition in 2023, and while his rookie year wasn't flashy, it was solid. Gibbs finished 18th in points with 10 top-10 finishes. In 2024, he made the Cup Series playoffs and had 12 top-10 finishes. 

The turning point

The end of 2024 is where Gibbs' momentum was stopped in its tracks, however. Gibbs missed the Cup Series playoffs in 2025, regressing in a campaign that saw him score 10 top-10s and finish a career-worst 19th in the standings. 

But 2025 was a worse year than the numbers would have you believe. Aside from the immediate aftermath of the season-opening Daytona 500, it took Gibbs seven races to break into the top-30 points and another 12 before he was above 20th. 

That was while his three JGR teammates in Chase Briscoe, Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell won a total of 13 races, with Briscoe and Hamlin advancing to the Championship 4 and Bell making the Round of 8. 

What makes the narrative surrounding Gibbs worse is the declaration filed by former JGR competition director Chris Gabehart, who is currently being sued by Joe Gibbs Racing for allegedly sharing trade secrets. 

In an official declaration on Wednesday, Gabehart said that he was pressured into becoming Gibbs' de facto crew chief for the final 19 races of 2025, beginning on June 28 at Atlanta. During Gabehart's stint atop the No. 54 pit box, Gibbs had seven top-10 finishes, putting together a much better second half of the 2025 campaign. 

In his declaration, Gabehart said that he "identified specific examples of the No. 54 team’s differential treatment that undermined my position as Competition Director."

"I further expressed serious concerns about the management of JGR’s No. 54 car, which is one of JGR’s four Cup Series entries," Gabehart said. "It was my view that the No. 54 car should be managed and held accountable in the same manner as the organization’s other cars."

It wouldn't be surprising if Gibbs, as the grandson of the company's founder and owner and the future heir of the organization, was and still is receiving treatment different from other drivers or teams at JGR. 

Regardless of what happens for the rest of his driving career, Gibbs is all but guaranteed a hand in the future of Joe Gibbs Racing. 

But its his performance, or lack thereof, on the racetrack at the moment that stands. At a championship-caliber organization, Gibbs is lagging behind, and it's not as if a magic switch can be flipped. 

Gibbs has plenty of driving acumen and more than likely will never be under any internal pressure in regard to losing his ride. But externally, the questions surrounding him will only multiply in quantity so long as he continues to lack a Cup Series win. 

Gibbs is 33rd in the Cup Series standings two races into the 2026 season.