Joe Gibbs leadership sees silver linings in Ty Gibbs' difficult nine-race stretch

NASCAR Cup Series driver Ty Gibbs has had a rough time in the Cup Series lately, finishing 25th or worse in eight of the last nine races since 35th place in the Charlotte ROVAL playoff race last year. However, Joe Gibbs Racing's (JGR) competition director sees progress in the No. 54 Toyota Camry XSE driver.

Chris Gabehart pointed out that in last week’s race at Phoenix, Gibbs had a shot at running in the top 10 with 15 laps to go before a brake problem ended his race.

"It looks very similar to last year, but it is quite different...They weren’t running good, but with 15 to go, they were running 10th. That’s not what they were going to do six months ago. They weren’t made of that same moxie. They weren’t going to wake up and find that opportunity to catch a break and have a shot at a top 10. Now, ultimately, ‘bad luck’ bit him again. They broke the brake rotor and didn’t get the finish," said Gabehart (via NASCAR.com).

Ty Gibbs was 34th in Stage 1 and improved with better speed and pit stops. However, the brakes failed when he was running in 13th place and he ended up finishing 25th at Phoenix Raceway.

"But the key is they found a way to get to the end of the day with a shot to salvage their day and that is really what is foundationally important of any good team," he added.

The fifth race for the NASCAR Cup Series is scheduled to begin at 3:30 pm ET at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, March 16.

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"We feel like things are going to turn around" - Joe Gibbs Racing's No. 54 crew chief on Ty Gibbs 'bad luck'

Ty Gibbs had a strong season last year before October, as he ended in 15th position overall and managed eight top-10 finishes. This season, he has only managed to land in the top 20 once in the last four races. He was caught in a crash during the first two races and had car damage at COTA before his brake issues last weekend at Phoenix.

The 22-year-old is currently ranked 34th in the NASCAR Cup points standings. Gibbs’ new crew chief, Tyler Allen also commented on their teamwork and mentioned their focus on turning the results during the upcoming races.

"I think we’ve both done a good job of looking at the positives from the weekend and the things that we could control and what we did well versus the things we couldn’t control," Tyler Allen said via NASCAR.com.

"I think if you asked both of us, we feel like things are going to turn around. No negativity. Disappointed in the results, but we’re both ready to go have some good results," he added.

Ty Gibbs's best finish this season was 16th at the season-opening Daytona 500.