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Ty Gibbs Argues the Upside of NASCAR Replacing Atlanta With California’s Road Course Marvel

Published 03/29/2024, 7:11 PM EDT

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via Reuters

Ty Gibbs‘ racecraft seems to be developing as rapidly as his craze in the new generation. The No. 54 Joe Gibbs Race car driver now sits in 2nd place in the Cup Series Standings, behind No. 19, his teammate Martin Truex Jr. Gibbs recently joined in for an interview on the Rubbin Is Racing Show.

Daniel DiOrio, aka Spider, one of the hosts of the show, presented Ty Gibbs with an intriguingly hypothetical question. He asked, “If I were Steve Phelps and I said, Hey, Ty Gibbs, I’m giving you the ability to add and remove one track from the NASCAR calendar, what are you adding and what are you removing?”

Ty Gibbs wishes to eliminate the Atlanta Motor Speedway

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I’m gonna remove Atlanta; that’s instant. You know, that’s an instant answer for me,” stated Ty Gibbs. Daniel, on the other end, was stunned to hear those statements. “Really? For coming from two top 10s!” inquired Daniel. Ty Gibbs, remaining honest, chuckled, “Two top tens? I don’t even know how I did it. Just round around and got in there.”

The 21-year-old then went on to express, what he didn’t like about the 1.5-mile oval track: You can’t really do anything. You’re all packed up together. It’s just, that I think the Racing’s not necessarily the greatest there. You know it might look cool on the TV broadcast. But you know,  it’s, we can’t really showcase all of our talents. Because we’re all r on the same speed. We’re all locked in the same box.

Ty shared his sentiments about the track, mentioning, “It’s kind of just, whoever stays out front, most likely wins. It’s not as crazy as would be at Daytona or Talladega,” recalled Ty, providing his concerns about the racing experience he has garnered over the last few years.

However, Grandson Gibbs admired the old Atlanta track, expressing, “That was a great track.” He praised the Old Track’s high-banked road course while lamenting his dead wish to race there.

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Prefers California’s Laguna Seca over Atlanta

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Further pondering the question, Ty Gibbs added, “That would be super cool, um if we could go to Laguna Seca.” The Laguna Seca Raceway is a 2.2-mile, FIA Grade Two road course. The race track includes 11 turns and has a 180-foot elevation change. It hosts the IndyCar Series races and the IMSA SportsCar Championship primarily, while including other racing events as well.

NASCAR prefers to race on oval tracks, be they short or long. However, venturing into another F1-preferred racetrack will be challenging for the drivers. Yet, Ty Gibbs preferring more challenges provided his reasons for choosing the track. “I feel like you know we being racing in kind of the California area is very fun. I think it’s you know, it’s a whole different. You know the demographic of people as well. So I think that it’s good for the sport but I think that’s a great track. It’s very nice and I think that’d be awesome.”

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Grateful Denny Hamlin Hopes To Repay Boss Joe Gibbs’ Life-Changing Favors by Supporting His Grandson

Ty Gibbs’ candid critique of Atlanta Speedway and his advocacy for Laguna Seca adds a fresh perspective to NASCAR’s track selection. His desire for more challenging circuits reflects a broader shift in the sport’s landscape, signaling potential changes ahead.

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Written by:

Susamay Dey

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Susamay Dey is a NASCAR Author at EssentiallySports. Combining his passion for writing and motorsports, he has gone on to pen down numerous articles on Stock Car Racing's fan favorites, like Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, and Bubba Wallace. While his strength lies in Core Sport reporting, he can also cover lifestyle pieces, enlightening fans about the lesser-known facts about NASCAR stars and their personal lives.
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Edited by:

Shivali Nathta