Joe Gibbs Racing announced Tuesday evening that Matt Tifft will be out indefinitely due to an upcoming surgery to remove a low-grade glioma (or slow-growing tumor) in the brain.
Tifft didn’t compete last weekend in the XFINITY Series at Iowa Speedway in the No. 18 car due to a back disc injury.
The tumor was found during treatment for the disc issue. He will undergo surgery and then begin rehabilitation, returning to competition once medically cleared to do so.
Tifft has made six XFINITY Series starts in 2016, three for JGL Racing and three for JGR. He scored his best finish of eighth in both of his last outings in the No. 18 car at Talladega and Dover.
He was scheduled to compete on Friday night at Daytona, but now David Ragan will race in the No. 18 Surface Sunscreen/Rugged Maniac Toyota.
Ragan competed in this race one year ago for JGR and finished seventh.