Ty Gibbs Confirms Joe Gibbs Racing Still Has Concerning Problem That Could Loom Large

Ty Gibbs made his first-ever NASCAR Cup Series playoff appearance this year. The 22-year-old was eliminated in the first round. Since his postseason exit, he posted a 5th at Kansas and a 13th at Talladega. On Sunday at the Charlotte Roval, the No. 54 driver didn't finish the race and scored his third DNF in 2024. Interestingly, the last time he failed to finish was at Pocono and for the same reason — mechanical failure.

A pair of engine issues on a single Joe Gibbs Racing Cup car in a season would be cause for concern. Unfortunately for the organization, Gibbs isn't alone. The three other cars have also experienced mechanical problems this year.

Christopher Bell had a race-winning car at Gateway and led 80 laps but faded at the end when his engine began "blowing up." A week later at Sonoma, Denny Hamlin ended his race on Lap 2 with a trail of billowing smoke coming from the pipes of his No. 11 car.

Martin Truex Jr. joined in on the engine-failure fun early in the final stage at the August Richmond race. A few days later, TRD General Manager Tyler Gibbs addressed the subject with Racer.com .

"We sent a TRD 'fire team' from our Costa Mesa (Calif.) engine shop to make tuning updates to all our engines heading to Michigan this weekend," Gibbs said. "We are confident that this remediation step will give us the durability margin we need. Our team partners, including our drivers, remain tremendously supportive.

"Our goal and expectation each year is perfect engine reliability. We had only one failure in 2023. TRD takes full accountability for the issues we have had this year, and we have fallen far short of what is acceptable. We will not rest until we regain our form. And rest assured, we will."

That was August 15. Two months later and still searching for their form.

And you have to believe Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell drive into each of the remaining four playoff races knowing another gremlin could strike within the JGR fleet and prove catastrophic to either one of their chances of claiming a championship.

Related: Denny Hamlin Angry With Bubba Wallace After Talladega