The Joe Gibbs Racing camp enters the 2025 Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway with strong momentum. Two of their drivers, Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe, have locked in spots and driven home significant wins en route to the finale. Their equipment and teamwork have shown resilience, but the desert showdown will test JGR.

Today at Phoenix Raceway, practice turned into pure chaos. Drivers battled more than just slick corners as tire issues swept through the field, leaving teams scrambling for answers. Chase Briscoe was among the first to run into trouble.

Tires pop, JGR explains the fix

After climbing out of his car, Chase Briscoe summed it up by simply saying, “That was chaos.” The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing driver revealed that his team was “about to have a third tire go down” during their last run at speed. It was a worrying sign, especially heading into the biggest race of the season.

He wasn’t alone. The No. 99 of Daniel Suárez also suffered a left-rear flat, followed shortly by the No. 9 of Chase Elliott reporting the same issue. Moments later, Kyle Busch joined the list with a puncture of his own, prompting teams across pit road to rethink their setups.

By the end of the session, the list of affected drivers had grown with Briscoe, Allmendinger (twice), Christopher Bell, Suárez, Herbst, Elliott, and Busch all dealing with tire problems or damage.

In total, left-rear failures seemed to be the common thread, leading to speculation about setup aggressiveness. JGR crew chief James Small stepped in to clear the air, explaining the issue wasn’t a tire defect, but a setup risk gone wrong.

“Too low on air, too much camber, just too aggressive,” Small said, downplaying concerns that the issue would carry over into race day. “I’m not worried one bit — we’ll adjust our setups.”

Still, the session was a wake-up call. Briscoe had only completed 24 laps, the fewest of any driver still running, even after multiple vibrations forced him back to pit road. The team was left with extra work to ensure their car was stable and competitive for the finale.

Adding to the confusion, Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Rudy Fugle noted that teams were originally more concerned about right-side tire failures based on data from a recent manufacturer wheel-force test at Phoenix. “We were watching the right side. Nobody expected the lefts to go like this.” Fugle admitted

With practice now behind them, teams are going back to the drawing board. For Briscoe and the rest of the playoff field, Phoenix has already proven unpredictable, and Sunday’s finale could test not just speed, but survival.

Practice flats fade, but the big prize looms. JGR hunts its first Cup crown since Kyle Busch in 2019, the longest dry spell since Tony Stewart in 2005 to Busch in 2015.

JGR eyes to end drought

The playoffs started with three JGR cars. Christopher Bell fell in the Round of 8, the same as in 2024. Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe punched through, with Hamlin winning Las Vegas and Briscoe taking Talladega.

Hamlin leads the season in wins with six. Briscoe tops top-fives with 15 and poles with seven. It has been a breakout year for the No. 19 rookie at JGR, turning a slow start into fast progress.

Past finales have stung. Hamlin came close in 2020 and 2021. Martin Truex Jr. fell short in 2021. Bell made it to the Championship 4 in 2022 and 2023, but no JGR driver has sealed the deal. In 2021, the team fielded two Championship 4 cars, and in 2019, it had three with Busch, Truex, and Hamlin.

Hendrick Motorsports took 2020 with Elliott and 2021 with Larson. Penske captured 2022 with Logano, 2023 with Blaney, and 2024 again with Logano. Penske is out now, while Hendrick fields Byron and Larson.

Byron, the regular season champion, leads in laps and took the Martinsville playoff win. Larson is the only past champion in the field.

JGR swept the top two at Phoenix in March, with Bell winning and Hamlin second, followed by Larson in third and Byron in sixth. Briscoe crashed to 35th in that race but won at Phoenix in 2022, making him a factor on Sunday.

The practice blows stings, but title hunger drives the team forward. Hamlin chases his first crown, Briscoe seeks a breakout title, and JGR adjusts its setups with one goal in mind: to finally end the wait.