Despite Positives, Gibbs’ Mexico Weekend Goes Winless

Ty Gibbs in action Sunday at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. (John Harrelson/NKP for Toyota Racing photo)

MEXICO CITY – When one knocks on the door of opportunity, sometimes there will be an answer and other times there unfortunately won’t be.

That was a description of young Ty Gibbs’ Sunday during the NASCAR Cup Series’ inaugural visit to Mexico City at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez road course.

The 22-year-old finished 11th, but the result didn’t do justice to the stellar outing he put together.

For most of the race, Gibbs had the fastest car. He was sharp and comfortable out in the rain to begin stage one, then managed the damp track while simultaneously taming the challenge of converting back to slick tires once the track began to dry throughout the day.

The stars seemed to all be aligning for Gibbs, who still sits outside the top 20 in the regular season points, to turn around his worst start to a year in his three full-time seasons. His early trajectory Sunday looked like he was in store for a possible first Cup Series win after he recently hit 100 career starts.

His pit stops were smooth, with no hiccups or penalties. Even when he had to start mid-pack at one point on a restart, he was able to drive from 14th back to second place.

On top of that, his stiffest competition all day – eventual race winner Shane van Gisbergen – had admitted Gibbs’s No. 54 was “just better” than his Trackhouse Racing No. 88 at times. Gibbs was able to overcome gaps, handle the bumps within the curbs and adjust his driving lines to make speed.

That could be partially credited to a strong showing in Saturday’s Xfinity Series race in Mexico, where he was 14th despite potential race-winning pace before a restart crash in the final stage of the undercard.

But despite all the positives in Gibbs’ pocket, that special outcome on Sunday just didn’t happen.

“Sometimes life just doesn’t work out for you. You just have to keep digging,” said Gibbs after an 11th-place finish in the Viva Mexico 250, where he got caught out by a late caution and faded during the final stint.

The Charlotte, N.C., native led just under 30 percent of the race – with 27 laps out front, second only to van Gisbergen – marking his most laps led since Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway in April at 31 total.

It all changed with a lap-65 caution when Carson Hocevar spun and stalled at the blind turn 15. Gibbs had a good shot at winning if there weren’t any stoppages in the final stage, as his strategy for tires and fuel was different from fellow contender van Gisbergen.

Gibbs short-pitted just before the end of each stage with two or three laps left. But the caution from Hocevar, who had spun coming to the front straightaway and couldn’t get his car re-fired, forced a full-course yellow after van Gisbergen and multiple others had already pitted for the final time.

Gibbs then had to pit, and while all hope wasn’t lost, he got a bit of damage and couldn’t get past Ross Chastain and Chase Elliott to settle within the top 10 and mount another charge toward the front.

“I don’t know what the rest of the field was doing on the restart where everyone checked up, and then everyone just railed against each other,” Gibbs said of the final restart after the Hocevar caution. “That is where I got a little nose damage, and it hurt the car.”

Though it wasn’t a win, Gibbs did clinch consecutive finishes inside the top 12, something he has only done once this year back in April. He was third at Michigan with a chance at a win falling just short due to fuel mileage, and came close again in Mexico.

But there are other positives for Gibbs to look at. He climbed to 24th in the overall points and suddenly sits just 34 points back of Michael McDowell for the 16th and final spot in the playoffs.

Gibbs heads to Pennsylvania’s Pocono Raceway now, where he finished fifth in 2023 and qualified on pole last summer.

Things are trending up for Gibbs, and while a win will completely overhaul a rough year like it did for van Gisbergen – who was outside the top 30 in points – his day still seems likely to come soon.

Broadcast coverage of the Great American Getaway 400 at Pocono is set for Sunday, June 22 at 2 p.m. ET, live on Prime Video, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.