Last weekend, NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Brandon Jones needed a win at Martinsville to advance to the second-tier category's Championship Four finale. He was leading late with already-qualified teammate Ty Gibbs behind him and seemed set to fight for a title at Phoenix, but Gibbs wrecked him intentionally. Jones was eliminated, opening another spot up for rival team JR Motorsports in a finale where that team will now have three contenders. It was a core violation of the only real unwritten rule in motorsports, "don't wreck your teammate."
The situation was made all the more awkward by how Gibbs handled it. As the grandson of team owner Joe Gibbs, some perceive the younger Gibbs as someone whose career is made for him whether he deserves it or not. While he has a strong track record of winning races cleanly, he also has a developing reputation as a driver who is willing to wreck anyone at any time for a win. That reputation only worsened when he wrecked his teammate in a race that mattered significantly to Jones and did not make a difference to Gibbs at all. He went one step further post race; when asked about the wreck, Gibbs compared himself to Jesus.
During media sessions before this weekend's season finale, Gibbs took a softer tone. He was straightforward about his regret, going as far as to say that "it was completely ridiculous and unacceptable I did it." It's a late switch to apology, too late to sway his competitors.
Noah Gragson, one of three JR Motorsports drivers with a shot at a championship on Saturday and most likely Gibbs's direct rival for the title, did not mince words: "I'm just voicing my opinion. I don't like him. I'm just speaking what everybody doesn't want to say, but they feel it." When asked what he doesn't like about Gibbs, he simply adds, "What is there to?"
Gibbs and Gragson are both expected to graduate to the NASCAR Cup Series full time in 2022. Gibbs has run 15 races at that level and already has one penalty for a driving standards violation.
