Sunday’s (April 12) Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway had an ending that every race fan wants: a young driver holding off two NASCAR Cup Series champions to win his first race with his proud grandfather looking on.
Ty Gibbs scored an emotional first Cup win for his family-owned team in his 131st start.
It was the biggest moment of Gibbs’ career since he won the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series title in 2022. It was also the biggest moment he celebrated without his father; Coy Gibbs passed away in his sleep the same night his son won the NOAPS title. Ty was just 20 years old at the time and suddenly found himself without his biggest supporter. He worked through his grief by racing, but it took him more than three years to finally get that big Cup win.
It was the kind of hard-fought, emotional win that should have been a big hit with race fans. So why wasn’t it?
Outside of Gibbs’ fanbase, his win was largely met with apathy, if not downright derision. Some referred to him as a “nepo baby” and a “silver spoon kid” because his grandfather, Joe Gibbs, owns his team, and JGR is one of the most powerful and successful teams in NASCAR.
It’s true that Ty Gibbs has had a leg up in the sport that few enjoy. He had top rides in NOAPS and the ARCA Menards Series. With the equipment he had, he should have won the titles he did. He achieved, but he didn’t overachieve the way a driver in lesser equipment would have to.
But Gibbs still has to drive the cars. And while his family’s money and position in the sport certainly gave him an equipment advantage, he has talent. He’s not the second coming of John Wes Townley.
Fans of Gibbs were quick to point to Dale Earnhardt Jr. as an example of a driver who enjoyed success because of a family-owned team to lean on, but that’s not particularly accurate, at least not yet. Earnhardt did not win a Cup title in his career, but he won 26 races; there are other NASCAR Hall of Famers with fewer wins at the top level.
Right now, the best comparison to Gibbs might be Austin Dillon. Like Gibbs, Dillon also got his first Cup win in his fourth full season behind the wheel of his grandfather’s car. He has a smattering of Cup wins to his name in equipment that’s a step below what Gibbs has.
Gibbs also hasn’t made himself the most likeable driver in the garage. He can be aggressive and rash on track (though he has improved in that area), but at the same time openly critical of other drivers who race against him in that same fashion.
When he was running NOAPS full time, Gibbs earned a reputation of a somewhat entitled attitude, and while he has been a bit more humble in much tougher Cup competition, it’s been a hard reputation to shed. He’s had his moments in Cup as well, perhaps most notably a couple of years ago when he retaliated against Ty Dillon on pit road for some perceived slight and nearly caused Dillon to hit one of his own pit crew.
More recently, he raced teammates Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell very aggressively as they were battling for the 2025 Cup title. Allegations of blatant favoritism for Gibbs, including allowing him to skip mandatory team competition meetings, among other things, came to light recently via former JGR crew chief and Competition Director Chris Gabehart. It was part of his public statement in a messy lawsuit in which JGR has accused Gabehart of stealing team secrets.
Those allegations of favoritism further cemented Gibbs’ status as the recipient of a silver spoon in the minds of fans. His first win wasn’t a fan favorite because Gibbs isn’t a fan favorite or even the kind of lovable underdog fans can get behind.
That’s not to say that Gibbs can’t shed at least some of his reputation should he go on to win more races and a title or two. That would put some of the talent questions to bed, if nothing else.
But Gibbs’ ascent through the ranks based in part on his last name, family money or even longtime sponsorship is part of a wider problem. In an age where owners can’t simply pitch a talented driver to sponsors and work out a deal to pay for the season, drivers who have family connections and bring money or sponsors to the table are part of a growing trend.
And fans see that — not always incorrectly — as rich, privileged kids taking seats away from more talented young drivers. More and more, that is indeed becoming the case.
The drivers who have the connections, wealth and backing will struggle to shed that reputation because a part of it is true. Though the more talent they show, the easier the voices are to silence.
It’s harder to convince fans that a young, privileged driver deserves a second look when his attitude on or off the track is less than humble or when he shows a tendency to dish out things he can’t take in return. That’s one area where Gibbs has improved, but he has not yet proved himself personable enough to make fans overlook his family name.
Drivers coming into the sport with family or money (or both) have to work harder to woo the fans. Unfortunately, as that trend grows and is coupled with sponsors and team PR throttling drivers’ personalities, it becomes harder for young drivers to seem relatable to the average fan. Even when that driver has the talent to win, they have to overcome the reputation for the win to resonate. They have to be humble off the track and sportsmanlike on it.
As the last remaining “old-school” drivers wrap up their careers, the younger generation has struggled to relate to fans in the same way their predecessors did. A hard-earned win (and Gibbs earned his win) should be something fans want to see, not dismiss out of hand because of how the driver got to that day. But here we are.
It’s not good for the future of the sport if fans can’t get behind young drivers. But at the same time, many, like Gibbs, have brought that apathy on themselves. It’s time for a deeper conversation among NASCAR and its teams on how to remedy a growing trend before it overruns the feel-good parts of the sport.
Amy is an 20-year veteran NASCAR writer and a six-time National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) writing award winner, including first place awards for both columns and race coverage. As well as serving as Photo Editor, Amy writes The Big 6 (Mondays) after every NASCAR Cup Series race. She can also be found working on her bi-weekly columns Holding A Pretty Wheel (Tuesdays) and Only Yesterday (Wednesdays). A New Hampshire native whose heart is in North Carolina, Amy’s work credits have extended everywhere from driver Kenny Wallace’s website to Athlon Sports. She can also be heard weekly as a panelist on the Hard Left Turn podcast that can be found on AccessWDUN.com's Around the Track page.
My perspective… yes, Ty Gibbs is everything his detractors say he is…. an entitled nepo baby who is cocky and aggressive. He has a silver spoon and an unchecked ego.
He’s also 24 years old. Please… don’t judge me by the man I was at 24 years old, and I wasn’t a rising star in a multi-million dollar sport who lost his father when he could have used his guidance. We’ve all done things that we look back on with embarrassment. I know I have. So, I’ll give the nepo baby a chance to grow up some, then I’ll decide whether he’s a Chase Elliott or an Austin Dillon.
I understand your perspective. I really do, and though I strongly dislike the person Ty Gibbs currently is, it doesn’t mean I’ll dislike him in the years to come. People can and do change. As you noted, I’m a much different person now than I was at age 24. Mostly calmer and wiser, but I’d sure like that energy back!
Much like Ty, I lost my father at a fairly young age, to an accident. In a small coincidence, I was exactly the same age Ty was when he lost his father. Sure, that was difficult, and honestly, decades later, it’s still difficult from time to time. But, to me it was never a reason to treat people poorly, or act as though I was better than everyone else, which is what I so often see out of Ty.
I do hope Ty figures it all out. Life is too short to hope people will remain unlikable, or write them off forever for the “crimes” of being cocky and entitled. But until he show some emotional growth, my opinions of him will be informed by the data I have, which is the person we see today. Perhaps part of his learning will come from seeing how others view him, whether this be fans, teammates, or competitors. Sometimes, it takes seeing an ugly truth to motivate someone to change.
I personally would have been ok if cry gibbs never won a cup race. We need more hardscrabble drivers and less entitled nepos or nascar will lose its fanbase further. I mean look at the bristol grandstands.
It seems Joe finally made Denny and 23XI show their secrets to JGR. Bubba and Reddick have been enjoying their advantages for 2 years, Denny too. Now they let little Gibbs in on the secrets. No way should bubba or ty be running with the likes of Blaney, Larson or Byron but they are. Ty Gibbs got miraculously way better this year the same way bubba started too 3 years ago. Amazing isn’t it.
I wonder if Little Gibbs has modified his Hall of Fame speech?
Probably told his crew chief to do it, and now is trying to get him fired because it wasn’t glowing enough.
Youre just a hater fans are loving it, just the media as usual trying to bring down someones great accomplishment. You chose to be negative this whole article when you easily could of wrote one that said “Why Ty Gibbs win is a Triumphant monent for Nascar and the Gibbs Family” and wrote about his father and what Ty has done to overcome the hatred and become a winner.
There is another article heaping love and praise for baby Gibbs on this site. Perhaps you should read that one to reaffirm your love for the guy since you can’t seem to handle a different opinion of him.
Comparing Ty Gibbs to Dillon–still laughing and shaking my head.
Yeah whoever wrote this is a clown
At least Ty hasn’t (yet) had to wreck someone to get his win.
I seem to recall Ty did it a lot in the lower series!
Pretty much sums up the attitude about Ty. Not a ‘warm and fuzzy’ kinda guy…but not ‘bad’ enough to really hate. Just sort of ‘meh’.
Great article, which gets to the heart of the problem. It’s only natural for the fan base to dislike this win. Ty has always shown a sense of entitlement. He’s never hesitated to throw his team under the bus, blame other drivers for issues, and seldom if ever has he owned his own mistakes. Add a distinct lack of charisma to this, and you have a singularly unlikable driver. But for his name, he almost certainly would have been fired in the five years it took him to finally secure a win. Why would anyone other than his family and team celebrate his victory?
Though I was not a Dale Jr. fan per se, I’ve always respected how he carries himself. Sure, every driver sees the red mist every now and again, but Jr. never hesitated to admit fault when he made a mistake on track, didn’t shy away from giving credit to competitors, and generally seemed to see things through the lens of what was best for his team, and NASCAR at large. The latter has only been amplified in the years since his retirement. Simply put, Jr. never came off as entitled. If anything, he seems to recognize the opportunities his name has given him, and taken to those opportunities with joy and modesty. It’s admirable.
Not a great article have yoy read most page comments on Nascar page, bristols post, Tys post, 90% are congratulations and happy for him. Yall just wanna hate
If you think this was a popular win, I have some oceanfront property to sell you. But by all means, disregard Amy Henderson’s perspective above. It’s not as though she’s spent 20 years as a professional NASCAR reporter, including many national awards. Oh, wait…
As for NASCAR’s “page”, NASCAR.com doesn’t have a comments section, so I have no idea where 90% of posts are congratulations. I’m sure wherever that’s happening, it was accurately counted to derive a percentage. Color me shocked a track (Bristol) would be touting the winner, though again, I have no idea what post is being referenced here. It’s almost as though Bristol has a vested interest in retaining interest in their track, despite an unpopular winner. It’s precisely what I would do, if I owned the track. Bristol would have done the exact same thing for whoever won the race.
This win is unpopular, and not just due to nepotism. Chase Elliott doesn’t have this problem, Dale Jr. didn’t have this problem, nor did Davey Allison. Why? Because they all are/were less likely to act entitled, and have/had generally likeable personalities, or at least not unlikable personalities. The next person I meet who doesn’t think Ty Gibbs acts like a spoiled brat will be the first.
You actually understood what he wrote? If you are going to post on a message board, at least have the ability to type so people can understand it.
Yeah, I brought my decoder ring with me today. I guess we now know the name Ty Gibbs uses as an alternate login.