Joe Gibbs Racing walked into New Hampshire with championship momentum but walked out with bruised egos and plenty of questions about their team, especially with Denny Hamlin chasing his first Cup title and Ty Gibbs fighting for his first win. Joe Gibbs’ grandson kept it short post-race: “It’s unfortunate, but I’m excited to go race next week,” a move that dodged fuel on the fire. But behind the scenes, JGR held a confidential meeting to hash it out, and Hamlin’s been tight-lipped since. And as a bystander, Chase Briscoe couldn’t help but notice some cracks within the team.

Speaking to Bob Pockrass, the No. 19 driver didn’t hold back on the internal JGR teamwork: “I mean, I certainly think that, you know, things will be different going forward for us, you know, just from a teammate side of things, just trying to make it easier for all of us, right? … It’s unfortunate that stuff has to happen, but, you know, typically when you have to have tough conversations, you know, things are normally for the better going forward, so I’m sure it will be different.” 

Ty Gibbs is not exactly the poster child for compliance. On lap 110 of the Mobil 1 301 race, he harnessed his stubborn reputation, as he did not give way to his teammates despite knowing how precious every track position is for them. And so in retaliation, Denny Hamlin put forth his ‘black hat’ reputation as well. After a few warning bumps, the No. 11 Toyota pushed into the rear of the No. 54, spinning out the latter into the outside wall. Post-race, Hamlin pleaded his innocence, saying his action was not intentional.

Though the JGR meeting was billed as productive, Gibbs offered no public comments and instead deferred to team leadership, leaving the internal handling shrouded in confidentiality. Earlier, he posted on Instagram in agreement with Kevin Harvick’s view that the JGR turmoil could threaten Hamlin’s championship run, signaling that he is not shying away from narrative control even if he isn’t speaking openly.

Chase Briscoe then drew attention to the camaraderie between the Ford drivers, saying, “No, I think just us being smarter, you know, you look at Penske, right? They’re probably the best example of just how to help each other out, and, you know, really just, they know that the more they can help each other, the better it’s going to be for all of them. And, you know, it’s something that truthfully, we probably haven’t done the greatest job at…It’s already hard a championship as it is… We’re not doing ourselves any favors, making it as hard as it is just on each other. So yeah, I definitely think that we’ll get better because of it.”

And the teamwork was very evident in New Hampshire. Penske affiliate and Wood Brothers Racing’s Josh Berry had every reason to race Ryan Blaney hard. But he made it clear on his own terms, saying, “You’ve got to take care of him. That’s how I try to race, anyway. These restarts and stuff, I try to do the best I can to be smart. It’s tough out there sometimes. I was going to race him hard but clean.” In the closing laps of the Mobil 1 301 at Loudon, Berry stayed glued to Blaney’s bumper and applied pressure even without the advantage of fresh tires.

Blaney eventually made the move for the lead with 39 laps remaining, taking advantage of his fresh rubber to slip past Berry. Despite the charge, Berry never resorted to bumping or risky contact, and Blaney later acknowledged, “That was good racing and clean racing. I appreciate Josh for not throwing me the bumper when he could have.” Even though Berry finished second and saw an early playoff exit, the teamwork and sportsmanship weren’t lost on the Penske drivers. And maybe the JGR drivers could take a few notes.

With Denny Hamlin’s “that’s all there is” approach to not revealing too much about the meeting, the JGR drivers need to sort out their internal problems to be able to rule and dominate the playoff season. However, this weekend may not be so bad for Chase Briscoe and his JGR camp.

Chase Briscoe claims pole position by edging out teammate at Kansas

Chase Briscoe was back on top for Saturday at Kansas Speedway, storming to his series-leading seventh Busch Light Pole Award of the season for Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 with precision and power. Briscoe lit up the track and reminded everyone why he is a qualifying force to be reckoned with.

The No. 19 Toyota was the only one to crack the 180-mph mark on the 1.5-mile intermediate oval, laying down a blistering lap of 29.987 seconds. That effort edged out his JGR teammate Denny Hamlin by just 0.101 seconds to secure the top spot for the second race of the Round of 12 of the NASCAR Cup Series playoff race. Meanwhile, Ty Gibbs makes a comfortable entry on Sunday with an eighth-place position.

The pole marks Briscoe’s first at Kansas and the ninth of his Cup Series career. What caught him off guard, though, was the notebook dropped in the qualifying speed compared to May, when Kyle Larson clocked a pole-winning lap at 183.730 mph. And with Christopher Bell qualifying fifth at 179.015 mph, Joe Gibbs Racing showed its muscle once again, placing three playoff contenders in the top five starting positions.