Gibbs hoping for an end to his three-race rough patch as NASCAR heads to Phoenix

With only Phoenix Raceway, Talladega Superspeedway, Martinsville Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway awaiting, the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season has boiled down to its final phase. Holding station in ninth place in the Chase standings is Joe Gibbs Racing wheelman Ty Gibbs.

Coming straight off a rough and tumble Sunday afternoon last week at Charlotte, where he placed 34th and wound up eight laps behind the leaders, Gibbs is looking to bounce back strong this weekend in the 312-lap Freeway Insurance 500 at Phoenix Raceway. Set to climb into the No. 54 Toyota Camry and try to claw his way back up the leader board, the 24-year-old will be backed by Monster Energy and the Big 12 Conference.

“[Phoenix] is a great racetrack," said Gibbs. "This place is sick, you know? We’ve had good runs here in the past. I’d love to get my fifth win here on Sunday. It would be so rad. We’ll see where we end up. I think we definitely have a shot, though.”

Gibbs is coming off something of a rough patch in the last three Cup races, scoring P17 finishes at Kansas Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway and running to a 34th place finish last Sunday at Charlotte.

“It kind of sucked in the last couple of races,” said Gibbs. “There was nothing good. I got wrecked last week by the No. 45 car. However, everyone gets the word that we are kind of improving our racing. Obviously, we’ve got great speed, we’ve just kind of had some crappy positions we’ve been in. Charlotte was really frustrating. It was just not cool. We just put our head down. Not much we can do now. It’s in the past.

"We’re looking at changing it all around and going out to win this weekend in Phoenix. I think we’ll have the speed, for sure. I felt really good in the simulator. I feel pretty good coming in here to Phoenix. I’ve got a great group of guys around me. They’re great dudes, and it is good to have the positivity.”

Immediately following the Phoenix race, Gibbs will face a mixed bag of Cup circuits as Talladega, Martinsville and Homestead-Miami offer up radically different challenges to the drivers and teams in coming weeks.

“Next week at Talladega is obviously the biggest mixed bag, but this week I feel like we’re going to be strong, and next week I think we’ll be strong. I think we’ll be strong in the rest of the races. We’ve got to capitalize on what we do and just keep getting better and keep working and learning. I think we’ll eventually be there.”

Despite the Charlotte setback, does Ty Gibbs still feel like the No. 54 team has a shot at the ’26 championship?

“Yeah, I do,” said Gibbs. “Just go win the next four. That’s my goal. That is our only option, so we’re just going to try and do that and see where we’re at. Maybe after we win the next four races, maybe we’ll win the championship. I don’t know. My goal is to try and win a couple of races here. It would be nice to win one of the next four races, but I’d also like win all of them, too. I think we’ll definitely have a shot to do it, we just have t maximize it and capitalize on what we’re doing with it.”

The Big 12, an NCAA Division 1 member across all sports, will be a co-primary sponsor adjacent to Monster Energy on the No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE in Phoenix.

“Monster Energy is sponsoring the Big 12 Conference and now they’re going to put their logo on our car, which is super cool,” explained Gibbs, grandson to Superbowl-winning coach Joe Gibbs. “It brings sports together with the racing. I kind of grew up around sports, so it’s super cool. I haven’t asked my grandfather Joe much about it, but yeah, I think he really likes that stuff. It should be pretty badass. We’re also going to have some athletes come out to the race and hang out and check it out. It’s going to be fun.”

Gibbs is looking to finish his Cup Series season on a high note.

“This year has been really good,” said Gibbs, who has claimed two wins, 12 top five finishes and 18 top 10 scores in 2026. “We could be in a better position in the championship, but it’s not over yet. It has been a lot of fun this year. We just want to keep getting better and keep maximizing. Our consistency was really good the whole way, except for the last three races. Yeah, it was pretty solid throughout the whole year.

"I just have to stay focused, but it has been a lot of fun. I’ve got good people around me to make my career easier. I wouldn’t be here without them. We just have to stay after it. I know that we can do it. I just need to win a couple races and put us back in contention.”