Joe Gibbs Racing NASCAR Cup Series Race Preview – WÜRTH 400 at Texas Motor Speedway – Speedway Digest

JGR AT TEXAS: Joe Gibbs Racing owns nine NASCAR Cup Series victories at Texas Motor Speedway. In 140 combined starts at the 1.5-mile facility, the organization has tallied 37 top-five finishes, 63 top-10s, five pole awards, and 2,272 laps led. Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin, and Tony Stewart have all driven JGR entries to victory lane at Texas.

DENNY HAMLIN

No. 11 Progressive Insurance Toyota Camry XSE

HAMLIN AT TEXAS: Denny Hamlin is a three-time NASCAR Cup Series winner at Texas Motor Speedway after sweeping the track’s races in 2010 and winning again in March 2019. In 34 career starts at the 1.5-mile track, Hamlin has posted eight top-five finishes, 16 top-10s, and 329 laps led. Last spring, Hamlin was leading comfortably before a caution with less than 15 laps remaining. He lost the lead after a quick caution on the ensuing restart. On the next restart, he was involved in an accident that relegated him to a 30th-place finish.

TALLADEGA RECAP: Hamlin finished 21st in last Sunday’s race at Talladega Superspeedway. After earning stage points in the first segment, the No. 11 driver positioned himself second before the final green-flag pit stop. Following the round of pit stops, he slid down the leaderboard and was unable to muster a late charge back towards the front.

SEASON SO FAR: Hamlin is one of three drivers with multiple wins this season. He currently sits third in the overall points standings, 53 points behind the leader. Hamlin ranks second in top-five finishes (five) and average finishing position (10.8). The Virginia native also ranks third in top-10 finishes (six) and laps led (315). Hamlin is the only driver to complete 100% of the laps so far in 2025.

PROGRESSIVE: Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE will feature Progressive Insurance this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. Joe Gibbs Racing recently announced that Progressive will be the primary sponsor of the No. 11 Toyota for 18 races this season. For more information on Progressive, visit www.progressive.com.

HISTORY OF THE 11: Throughout NASCAR history, the No. 11 has visited victory lane more than any other car number. Hamlin’s win at Darlington Raceway was the 236th time a No. 11 car has won in the Cup Series. For Hamlin, his 56 wins driving the No. 11 are the most of any driver to take the illustrious car number to victory lane. The list of drivers who have taken the No. 11 to victory lane includes Bobby Allison (3 wins), Mario Andretti (1 win), Buddy Baker (2 wins), Geoffrey Bodine (4 wins), Bill Elliott (6 wins), A.J. Foyt (1 win), Denny Hamlin (56 wins), Ned Jarrett (49 wins), Junior Johnson (11 wins), Parnelli Jones (1 win), Terry Labonte (4 wins), Darrell Waltrip (43 wins), and Cale Yarborough (55 wins).

CHASE BRISCOE

No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE

BRISCOE AT TEXAS: Chase Briscoe has four NASCAR Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway. In all four starts, Briscoe has finished 15th or better with one top-five result and three top-10s. His 9.0-average finishing position is his best at any track on the Cup Series schedule. In four NASCAR Xfinity Series starts, Briscoe collected two top-five finishes and one pole award. He also finished in the top five in both of his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series starts at the 1.5-mile track.

TALLADEGA RECAP: Briscoe led a season-high 20 laps on Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway. The No. 19 driver started 17th and quickly organized with the rest of the Toyota brigade to move to the front. Briscoe led 15 laps during the first stage prior to pitting before the end of the segment. Similar to stage one, the No. 19 team pitted late in stage two and the strategy gave Briscoe the lead to start the final segment. He led five more laps in the race and ultimately finished 15th.

SEASON SO FAR: The Indiana native ranks 12th in the points standings through ten races. He is currently 25 points above the cutline in the race to qualify for the playoffs. He is one of eight drivers to record three or more top-five finishes so far.

MEET CHASE BRISCOE: Briscoe will sign autographs at the Bass Pro Shops in Fort Worth, Texas (12901 Cabela Drive, Fort Worth, TX 76177) Saturday, May 3, at 5 p.m. CT. 150 wristbands will be distributed at the store beginning Saturday morning at 9 a.m. CT.

JAMES SMALL: 2025 marks James Small’s sixth season as a NASCAR Cup Series crew chief. The first five years of his tenure as crew chief were spent with Martin Truex Jr. as Small led the No. 19 team to eight wins, 46 top-fives, 86 top-10 finishes, and four NASCAR playoffs appearances. The Australia native led Truex to a runner-up finish in the 2021 championship and to the 2023 regular season championship.

BASS PRO SHOPS: Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Newsweek as “America’s Most Trusted Retailer for Outdoor Gear”. For more information or to shop online, visit www.basspro.com.

CHRISTOPHER BELL

No. 20 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry XSE

BELL AT TEXAS: Christopher Bell has posted three top-five finishes in six NASCAR Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway. He is no stranger to victory lane at the track after finding his way to victory lane in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in November 2019 and in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series in June 2017. Bell also registered a pair of pole awards in the Xfinity Series.

TALLADEGA RECAP: Bell finished 35th in last weekend’s race at Talladega Superspeedway after being involved in an accident on a lap-52 restart. Prior to the misfortune, Bell had found his way to the front and was the leader on that particular restart.

DIRT TRACK: Bell will compete in the High Limit Racing Sprint Car event Thursday night at The Dirt Track at Texas Motor Speedway driving the No. 69k Interstate Batteries entry for team owner, and National Sprint Car Hall of Famer, Don Kreitz Jr.

ADAM STEVENS: Two-time Cup Series champion crew chief Adam Stevens has enjoyed his own success at Texas Motor Speedway. He has led his teams to three Cup Series wins (April 2016, April 2018, and October 2020) and two Xfinity Series victories (April 2013 and November 2014) at the track.

INTERSTATE BATTERIES: Interstate Batteries, the leading replacement battery brand with the largest independent battery distribution system in North America, enters their 34th consecutive season as a primary partner at Joe Gibbs Racing. Earlier this season, the ‘Outrageously Dependable’ brand was featured on the No. 20 Toyota at Daytona International Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Following this weekend’s race at Texas Motor Speedway, Interstate Batteries will close out 2025 with the No. 20 team in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway (November 2).

TY GIBBS

No. 54 SAIA LTL Freight Toyota Camry XSE

GIBBS AT TEXAS: Ty Gibbs’ best finish in three NASCAR Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway was a 13th-place result last April. Gibbs proved to be quick at the 1.5-mile facility by qualifying fourth in 2023 and second in 2024. He also finished 12th and third in a pair of NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Texas.

TALLADEGA RECAP: Gibbs led a race-high 32 laps – all coming during the final stage – and finished 17th in last Sunday’s race at Talladega Superspeedway.

TRENDING UPWARD: With two top-10 finishes in the last three races, Gibbs has vaulted nine positions in the points standings over that stretch. Following the race at Martinsville Speedway on March 30, Gibbs was 60 points below the playoff cutline. Leaving Talladega Superspeedway, his deficit to the cutline is down to 25 points.

TYLER ALLEN: Crew chief Tyler Allen is in his first year leading Gibbs and the No. 54 team. While this is Allen’s first experience as a crew chief at the Cup Series level, he had a standout season in 2024 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. Allen led JGR’s No. 20 Xfinity Series team to eight victories and a runner-up finish in the owner’s championship.

JGR PR