Ty Gibbs Scores First Cup Win in Bristol Thriller

Ty Gibbs Scores First Cup Win in Bristol Thriller Icon Sportswire - Getty Images Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson dominated Bristol Motor Speedway’s Food City 500, leading 474 of the 505 laps in the overtime event, but neither of them could deprive 23-year-old Ty Gibbs of his first career NASCAR Cup victory. Gibbs, who led the race’s final 25 laps, became the fifth driver to record his first career Cup victory at the tough half-mile track, defeating Blaney by 0. 055-second and Larson by 0.

229-second. The other four drivers who scored their first Cup victory at Bristol are seven-time NASCAR Cup champion Dale Earnhardt, Cup champions Rusty Wallace and Kurt Busch, and Ernie Irvan. Gibbs said it was “super cool” to be in that elite group.

“Those are the most bad-ass guys there ever was,” Gibbs said. “Kurt has been such a big help for me in my career. ” The race’s turning point occurred during the eighth caution period, which consumed laps 478-485 of the originally scheduled 500-lap race.

Larson and Blaney pitted, but Gibbs didn’t. “On that last green-flag run, we had been discussing for a majority of that stint what we were going to do if the caution came out on any given lap,” crew chief Tyler Allen said. “As the laps closed down, having watched a couple of the races, knowing there was very little fall-off, it was our preference to stay out.