NASCAR driver Ty Gibbs remains playoff-focused before Watkins Glen

• Ty Gibbs won the inaugural NASCAR In-Season Challenge, earning a $1 million prize.
• Gibbs is currently 19th in the standings, 87 points out of a playoff spot, with three races remaining.
• While he hasn’t won a Cup Series race yet, Gibbs has four top-five finishes this season and is focused on securing a win in the remaining races.

Ty Gibbs doesn’t know the whereabouts of his NASCAR In-Season Challenge trophy.

“Honestly, I forgot about it for the last week or two or whenever Indy was,” he said with a chuckle this week.

His best guess: the Joe Gibbs Racing shop in Huntersville, North Carolina.

But it’s not that the 22-year-old doesn’t care. He just remains hyperfocused on the next few weeks. Gibbs sits 19th in the playoff standings, three spots and 87 points back of the final postseason berth ahead of the Cup Series’ trip to Watkins Glen this weekend.

Three weeks left in the regular season. No time to worry about anything else.

Ty Gibbs reflects on NASCAR In-Season Challenge win

Gibbs claimed the inaugural in-season tournament by piloting his No. 54 Toyota to 21st during the Brickyard 400 at the end of July. In the final event of the five-week bracket, he just needed to beat Ty Dillon, who ended up in 28th.

“It was very cool,” said Gibbs, who wouldn’t mind seeing the challenge return for a second year. “I think the fans liked it as well because they could bet on it a lot, too. It was cool, fun to do and fun to be a part of.”

Afterward, Gibbs pledged $10,000 of his $1 million prize to a charity of Dillon’s choosing. It was an impromptu thought, but one Gibbs and Dillon fully intend to work out.

“We’re in the midst of talking about it right now, so just seeing where his idea is there,” Gibbs said.

He has not spent any of the money yet. When asked if he plans to splurge on something fun, he said it will probably go toward racing expenses.

There’s that focus again.

Ty Gibbs heads to Watkins Glen in search of first win

Gibbs doesn’t fantasize about his first win.

“I don’t idolize it,” he said before clarifying. “But I focus on it a lot and just try to go at it every week and make it an option every week.”

Gibbs rose through the ranks as one of NASCAR’s hottest prospects.

In March of 2019, he debuted in ARCA. He scored his first victory that June. Across three ARCA seasons, he ran 47 races and settled into the top 10 in all but five of them.

He scored 18 wins. 

Same deal in the Xfinity Series.

He sped to a victory in his first race on the Daytona road course in February of 2021. In 66 races at that level, he already holds 12 wins.

But in the Cup Series, he’s still pursuing that first visit to Victory Lane. Gibbs has started 109 races over four years since his 2022 debut at Pocono.

He’s gotten close.

After eight top-five finishes in 2024, he’s racked up four this season. That includes a second-place mark at the Chicago Street Race last month.

“We’re kind of a young team,” Gibbs said. “A lot of our guys are new in that position, so just kind of getting a feel for that and everybody getting experience has been the biggest key.”

Last fall, Gibbs received his first taste of the playoffs. He gained entry on points. This year, that looks like a tougher proposition.

He probably needs a win at Watkins Glen, Richmond or Daytona.

“They’re all circled,” Gibbs said.