Joe Gibbs can do it all is something a lot of people agree on, but controlling injuries on the racetrack – probably not. A recent incident at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track saw his grandson, Ty Gibbs’ car, flip on the track. Alex Bowman is also someone who has had a similar injury, and NASCAR insider Ryan Flores believes Gibbs is lucky to have escaped a serious setback.

Bowman‘s injury led to a broken back, while Gibbs walked away unhurt and also raced at the NASCAR Las Vegas race just days later. Flores, speaking with Corey LaJoie on the Stacking Pennies podcast, believes things could have gone worse if he had crashed any differently.

“Ty Gibbs, I give him credit for getting in a sprint car, but a sprint car is not something you dabble in,” said Flores. “You end up in a bad way quickly in those things. He got lucky the way he hit the fence. If he had come down with the seat on top of the fence, that’s a broken back.”

Joe Gibbs was asked about his thoughts on the incidents after the Las Vegas race. He stated that he was always concerned about deviating from the original policy of not allowing his drivers to participate in sprint cars.

“Originally, I was in one spot when thinking about it. Changed my mind and I decided, those guys really to be truthful, they really don’t have a lot else in the offseason,” said the owner Gibbs.

Veteran driver Bowman’s back injury led to a fractured vertebra as his car flipped at 34 Raceway in Iowa. The injury derailed Bowman’s season. Despite returning, he was not able to carry on his pre-injury momentum and finished outside the playoff spots.

“You cannot afford to miss a race anymore, it’s not like it was with the playoffs, you have to protect yourself,” said Flores.

Having escaped a scary injury. Gibbs made it a point to leave Vegas with something positive. He finished the race fifth, despite an early speeding penalty.

Joe Gibbs Racing has a talented driver at its hands

His success in Las Vegas meant that Gibbs would join an illustrious group. At 23, he became the fifth youngest driver in NASCAR Cup Series history to finish top five in three straight races. Gibbs joins drivers like Joey Logano, Kyle Busch, Erik Jones, and William Byron to reach the achievement.

Driving for his grandfather’s team, Gibbs already has four years of experience as a driver, but he’s still waiting for that elusive Cup win. He had a disappointing 2025 season and is putting all the lessons he learned to use this time around.

He is currently 10th in the driver standings, but if he carries on the same form into the Darlington race, Gibbs could make a move up the standings.

The young driver has had great success in Darlington. He finished his career-best second at the track in May 2024 and will be hoping for a similar result on Sunday.