It was all going so well for Chase Briscoe. After out-dueling Josh Berry to snatch the Stage 2 win at Pocono Raceway, the No. 19 looked like it was finally cashing in on the promise Joe Gibbs Racing saw when they signed him for the 2025 season. The win marked his first stage victory since joining Joe Gibbs Racing. For a moment, it felt like a statement: Briscoe’s here, and he’s ready to contend. But NASCAR has a cruel sense of timing and an even crueler way of punishing pit road mistakes.

What should’ve been a career-highlight reel was about to spiral into a fuel strategy nightmare. And the moment it unraveled? You could hear it in crew chief James Small’s panicked voice. The team went from frontrunners to damage control mode in a matter of seconds. But, at the end of the day, the Joe Gibbs driver got the result he was hoping for!

Joe Gibbs Racing’s fuel fiasco gives a momentary scare to Chase Briscoe

On Lap 120, the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing driver was the first of the leaders to peel off for a green flag pit stop. What was meant to be a textbook fuel-and-go moment turned into a complete misfire. “Going on me,” crew chief James Small radioed as Briscoe entered pit road. The jack dropped, Briscoe launched, and then came Small’s panicked shout: “Wait, wait, wait, wait!” But it was already too late.

By Lap 126, the truth hit like a brick. “We are f—– on fuel here, Chase,” the number Joe Gibbs 19 team boss told his driver bluntly. “We’re just going to have to see how this goes and see if we can make it. Everything you can do to save here.” The miscue? Briscoe left the box before the car had taken on a full tank of fuel. That error has turned the rest of the race into a desperate game of mileage conservation, hoping cautions would save them from running dry.

However, by the end of the race, Chase Briscoe delivered a masterclass in fuel saving and composure under pressure. Despite the earlier chaos, Briscoe expertly managed his mileage while keeping Denny Hamlin, the master of Pocono, firmly in his rearview mirror. With about ten laps to go, Briscoe was told he could save fuel even more aggressively as Hamlin failed to close the gap.

Lap after lap, he held steady, eventually crossing the line 0.682 seconds ahead of the No. 11. “To finally deliver a win is just an awesome feeling,” Briscoe said on Prime Video after winning the race. Not only did the driver salvage the day, he turned it into a signature win, his first in Joe Gibbs Racing colors.

With this win, Chase Briscoe has officially locked himself into the NASCAR Playoffs, silencing any doubts about his move to Joe Gibbs Racing. It’s a turning point in his season and possibly his career. But with momentum finally on his side, can Briscoe keep this fire burning through the summer stretch?

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Denny Hamlin falls just short as Joe Gibbs Racing scores big at Pocono

Few tracks have been as kind to Denny Hamlin as Pocono Raceway. With a record seven NASCAR Cup Series wins and one more wiped from the history books due to a 2022 disqualification, the “Tricky Triangle” has long been Hamlin’s stomping ground. He reminded everyone why again this weekend, laying down a blazing lap of 172.599 mph in qualifying to secure his 44th career pole and his fifth at Pocono.

Once the green flag dropped, Hamlin picked up right where he left off, cruising to a Stage 1 victory while holding off Chris Buescher. But at Lap 120, the No. 11 Toyota made its green flag stop, staying a few extra seconds to take in more fuel than leader Chase Briscoe. What followed was a high-stakes game of cat and mouse between the two Joe Gibbs Racing drivers. Briscoe was trying to stretch every last drop, with Hamlin lurking just behind.

For the final 20 laps, it was a slow squeeze. Lap after lap, Hamlin hovered within half a second of Briscoe, trying to force an error or find an opening. But even as Briscoe coasted to save fuel, Hamlin couldn’t mount a serious charge. By Lap 145, his team acknowledged the difficulty. Hamlin was stuck in second, unable to get closer than four to five car lengths.

At the checkered flag on Lap 160, it was Briscoe who took home the win by 0.682 seconds. Hamlin settled for runner-up, but with his playoff berth already secured, the result was more strategic than heartbreaking. Still, for Joe Gibbs Racing, the day couldn’t have gone much better. A 1-2 finish at a track they’ve historically dominated. With both Briscoe and Hamlin firmly in the playoff picture, could this be the momentum shift that defines their championship push? Let us know what you think of JGR’s banner day at Pocono in the comments!