Joe Gibbs has always been an example of greatness with his personal track record. While his NASCAR Cup Series team has enjoyed success time and again, it hasn’t been all pleasant in the past few years. Now that the 2023 season has ended, it is worth looking back at where Joe Gibbs Racing lost the plot in their bid to win the championship.

Last year, when Kyle Busch announced his departure, many feared how his career would turn out. It is worth noting that JGR’s last title came with Rowdy winning in 2019. While it could have turned out to be positive in the 2023 campaign, multiple issues led to an unsuccessful season.

Joe Gibbs has plenty to ponder upon after a questionable 2023 Cup Series season

It is no secret that a lot is expected from a team of Joe Gibbs Racing’s stature. Ever since Kyle Busch’s 2019 title triumph, the Cup Series giants have struggled with consistency. With this one key factor, a lot could have been achieved but instead, a lot is lost.

Since the team’s inception in 1992, it took eight seasons after which it first won the championship. It was Bobby Labonte who took the team to glory then. After that, two titles came in the next five seasons before JGR saw its driest patch ranging from 2006 to 2014.

While the team came close to winning it multiple times, they just couldn’t go all the way. It was then that Busch went on a solid run from 2015 to 2019 securing two titles. However, since then, things haven’t gone Joe Gibbs’ way, and more so this season, resulting in their fourth year without a championship to their name.

With a team having four top drivers and equally good cars, it is only natural to have high expectations. In fact, when Martin Truex Jr won the 2023 regular season championship, it seemed the tide was turning towards JGR. To add, Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell joining him in the playoffs only made them stronger. After the initial struggles and their 2006-2014 slump, this is now their third-longest spell without a title.

Joe Gibbs had the perfect combination of youth and experience in the 2023 campaign. While Ty Gibbs was still finding his feet in the top division, Bell made sure he capitalized when it mattered. The duo of Hamlin and Truex Jr showed their craft and class, especially with the latter stepping up after a difficult 2022 season.

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So what really went wrong for Joe Gibbs Racing despite having a strong team at their disposal?

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Without a doubt, Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports are two of the biggest names in the NASCAR Cup Series. While the latter has made it large, JGR is behind them in more than one way. Like HMS, they too field four teams lately. However, it is how their individual teams go about their business that makes a massive difference.

Martin Truex Jr did incredibly well to win the regular season championship this year. However, his form in the playoffs took a drastic dip and it had more to do with his pit problems. Time and again, a mishap in the pit would hamper his race and yet a prompt action was missed.

On similar lines, HMS driver William Byron did fantastically well in the playoffs. While it looked like he would struggle to make it to the Championship 4 because of his car issues at Martinsville Speedway, his crew stepped up and guided him to perfection. While Byron and Truex Jr’s issues were not directly the same, the promptness in reacting made a huge difference.

It was not just Truex Jr but even the other three drivers struggled with technical failures throughout the season. In fact, looking back, Denny Hamlin could have easily made it to the Championship 4 had it not been for such mishaps. The incidents at Darlington Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway were the perfect examples. Safe to say, Hamlin looked in prime form in the playoffs and could have been a real threat in the final four.

Barring the technical errors, the four teams never looked as much in cohesion as one would expect. More often than not, each JGR team looked invested in their own agendas. While it was not totally wrong of them, other teams have benefited from being more supportive on the track. It is certainly not just individual brilliance that helped both Kyle Larson and William Byron to qualify for the Championship 4.

Having said all that, the drivers do have their own share of responsibilities. Truex Jr’s dip in form was totally unprecedented and one would expect a racer of his experience to perform better given his capabilities. As far as Hamlin is concerned, fortune did play a role. At the same time, a stronger performance in the regular season could have helped his cause.

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All in all, multiple factors come into play in Joe Gibbs’ team’s failure to win the title this season. A man of his experience and intelligence would surely be invested in making significant changes for the next season. What would help JGR get better and pose a strong chance for 2024? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.