On Sunday, Joe Gibbs Racing added a third contender for the 2025 NASCAR Cup championship. That driver was none other than newcomer Chase Briscoe, after a strategic masterclass in fuel economy. It wasn’t easy because he had to fend off teammate Denny Hamlin, as well as some other top rivals. Now, he will contend for the title alongside Hamlin and fellow JGR driver Christopher Bell.
In light of this, team owner Joe Gibbs reflected on his organization’s success. Let’s not forget that when he first entered the sport as a team owner, Gibbs came from an NFL background as a former head coach. Which pretty much explains why he is still fondly referred to as Coach Gibbs. As someone who has been part of two different fields, was there any common ground and lessons that the two sports can teach each other?
With three Super Bowl triumphs and five NASCAR Cup titles, Gibbs knows how to handle different personalities. Be it the locker room or the race shop, the veteran owner seems to have the right people in the right places. While there were concerns surrounding the massive overhaul within the driver lineups and crew chief swaps, JGR seems to be firing on all cylinders. But, for Coach, the only element that seems to have stayed relevant across different arenas is the human element, and he tries his best to find the right formula.
Gibbs said in the press conference, “I think what we’re dealing with in pro sports. What I love, it’s constantly changing. Pro sports are 30% a year in football and 30% a year in NASCAR. The thing that doesn’t change is human nature. You win with people, and we got great people, and two of them took part today. I think James, the way he cares about things really comes across, and then Chase. You win with people, and all the other people that we have there at Joe Gibbs Racing, we’re surrounded by really, really good people. That’s what you eventually win with, human nature and same things excited us 2000 years ago. Same thing that discouraged us, so human nature doesn’t change. Get the right people and you’ll win.”
NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Daytona 500, Feb 21, 2016 Daytona Beach, FL, USA NASCAR Sprint Cup team owner Joe Gibbs after the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports, 21.02.2016 15:56:14, 9129331, NPStrans, Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR, Daytona 500, Joe Gibbs PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xMarkxJ.xRebilasx 9129331
Chris Gayle, who helped Ty Gibbs win the Xfinity Series championship, was shifted to the #11 team. Denny Hamlin had to part ways with Chris Gabehart. Chase Briscoe paired with James Small, another new partnership, and while they took time to get into victory, all these changes have yielded positive results. Gabehart, who played a key role in Hamlin’s career, also took up more responsibility as the competition director. This goes to show how skilled Coach Gibbs is at managing people and giving them the best resources to make a positive impact.
With Chase Briscoe’s Pocono win, Joe Gibbs Racing has three of its four drivers locked into the playoffs. But this transition from SHR to JGR hasn’t been smooth for Briscoe.
James Small has embedded accountability and ownership within his team
Chase Briscoe has been competing in the NASCAR Cup Series for some time now. With two race wins at Stewart-Haas Racing, he had over 140 Cup races under his belt. Unfortunately, he joined the SHR camp when they were on their decline, far from the decade when #4 Ford would compete for championships every year. While a lot of teams were keen to sign Briscoe, he couldn’t turn down the offer to drive for Coach in a tier-1 Toyota partner team.
However, there were significant cultural changes that Briscoe had to adapt to, which Small highlighted during the interview. “It’s been a lot of work. From where he came from, there wasn’t much accountability. Nobody was holding his feet to the fire; that’s probably a big wake-up call for him. We expect a lot, we demand perfection. He is a different personality type, especially to me and a couple of people on the team. So, it’s been a challenge, I won’t lie, but he absorbs everything like a sponge. So we’re still a work in progress, and we’re far from being where we think we can be.”
That’s the mentality within the JGR camp, and now that the #19 team has tasted a win, they will be eyeing to bag more wins this season. However, the primary objective from here on would be to gain as many playoff points as they can in the upcoming nine races.
The post Joe Gibbs Credits 2,000-Year-Old Wisdom for His Remarkable Journey From the NFL to NASCAR appeared first on EssentiallySports.
