Joe Gibbs is a name that echoes through both NFL and NASCAR history. In the NFL, he turned the Washington Redskins (now Commanders) into a juggernaut, snagging three Super Bowl rings in 1983, 1988, and 1992, each with a different quarterback, Joe Theismann, Doug Williams, and Mark Rypien.

His knack for adapting game plans and leading with precision, like his legendary “Counter Trey” play, earned him two Coach of the Year nods and a 1996 Pro Football Hall of Fame induction. After retiring in 1992, he returned from 2004 to 2007, guiding Washington to two more playoff runs. But Gibbs didn’t stop at football. In 1992, he traded playbooks for pit strategies, founding Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) with a single car driven by Dale Jarrett. By 1993, they’d won the Daytona 500, kicking off a NASCAR dynasty that’s since claimed Cup titles with Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart, and Kyle Busch.

Gibbs brought his NFL discipline to the track, building a team that’s as much about culture as it is about speed. One of the few to win championships in two major American sports, he’s a rare breed, a cross-sport titan who’s mastered both. Recently, the veteran team owner got real about what it was like jumping from the NFL’s sidelines to NASCAR’s pit road, sharing some heartfelt thoughts on which challenge tested him more.

NASCAR racing was a humbling experience for Coach Gibbs after his NFL success

On Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour podcast, Gibbs didn’t sugarcoat it, “I got to tell you, it was really hard for me. Think about this I was very fortunate. I got the right place in football, the right staff, the right players, right? So we went to the Super Bowl the second year I coached. So I come down here 9 years, you talk about this sport. Is really hard. And so as you know that well, but yet that’s the I think the thrill of it is it really is hard,” he said.

That quick NFL success with a Super Bowl in just his second year with Washington came from a tight-knit setup where Gibbs had the perfect staff and players, all pulling in one direction. NASCAR, though, was a whole different beast. JGR required nine years of grinding to hit its stride. Bobby Labonte in 2000 allowed Coach Gibbs to taste the title win in NASCAR, competing against giants like Jack Roush, Rick Hendrick, and Richard Childress.

Unlike football’s singular focus, NASCAR’s complexity of managing drivers, sponsors, and cars week after week really tested Gibbs’ adaptability. The sport’s high failure rate, where only one team wins each race, made every victory a battle, yet that struggle fueled his passion for the challenge.

He kept going, “And for instance, in our case, we’re trying to get four teams to work together. I love that part of it too. And you know, football was the one team over here. It’s trying to get four teams together to work together and then go to the racetrack and then everybody’s kind of after it on their own for their sponsor and their career. But I, I just, I, I love the fact I get up every morning with the challenge of, hey, we get to go. I get a race against Rodger Penske and Rick Hendrick and Jack Roush and all these guys. So I get a kick out of it. I get, you know, it’s fun to compete and I love it. I love it as a sport. I think it’s absolutely great.”

Gibbs’ love for NASCAR shines through in how he tackles the chaos of running four JGR teams, each with its own driver, like

Denny Hamlin or Christopher Bell, chasing personal glory and sponsor demands while still sharing data and resources. In football, he coached one squad with one goal; in NASCAR, he’s herding four cats who race together but fight for themselves. From a one-car operation, Joe Gibbs Racing has become a NASCAR dynasty now. It is worth noting that JGR is only one of the two teams allowed to compete with four charters. And that goes to show the profound impact Coach Gibbs has made on the sport of NASCAR.

Gibbs defends Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch’s antics

Both Tony Stewart and Kyle Busch were colorful personalities in the NASCAR garage. Who can forget Stewart’s iconic helmet throw at Matt Kenseth at Bristol or Rowdy’s scuffle with Joey Logano in Vegas? Gibbs must have had a hard time keeping the two drivers in check. While the two drivers had their moments both on and off the racetrack, the veteran owner had nothing but praise for his former champions.

Joe Gibbs especially remembered the first year, when Mars Inc. signed up with Kyle Busch and celebrated eight wins in 2004. “I appreciate them so much because they won a ton. I gotta tell you, Mars in an example when they got into the sport, they had been in like eight years or something, had won two races. And the first year we put Kyle in that thing, I remember that we got him signed up, he won seven or eight races that first year. Things like that, you can’t imagine how important it was for us.”

Well, it has been quite some time since the veteran owner got to lift the Bill France Trophy. With Denny Hamlin trying to complete his NASCAR story and Christopher Bell looking to announce his arrival, a Cup Series title will find its way back in the JGR shop.