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Team owner Joe Gibbs left Martinsville both happy and sad. On one hand, he had two cars fighting for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series championship, and on the other, he had to watch Christopher Bell fall out of contention.Bell, who drives the No. 20 for Joe Gibbs Racing, is currently in his fifth season with the team. He made the playoffs with his Atlanta victory back in February. With a total of four wins, 13 top fives, and 22 top-10s this year, the Oklahoma native ranks fifth in driver standings. During a recent press conference, Joe Gibbs addressed the No. 20 team and said,“The way everything worked out for us, our Playoff schedule is so tough, the 20 has had a heck of a year, but we just wound up yesterday we weren't quite good enough to get in.”“So that part of it is a downer, but we have two cars that obviously to be in the Final 4 is a thrill for us,” Gibbs continued. “You got the 11 with Denny (Hamlin) and Chris Gayle (crew chief) and all the emotion and stories that goes with that car. Then you've got our first-year car with Chase (Briscoe) and James (Small, crew chief) just having a heck of a year with the 19."Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe now have a shot at bringing the title back to JGR for the first time since 2019, back when Kyle Busch won his second Cup Series championship with the organization. Notably, they hold the top two spots in the championship standings.Joe Gibbs circles out issues with JGR cars following Martinsville mishapTwo Joe Gibbs Racing drivers, Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe, faced mechanical issues during last Sunday’s playoff race at Martinsville Speedway. Days later, Joe Gibbs addressed the problem, confirming that it was all due to a bad batch of “valve springs”.However, the team now has a foolproof strategy for their upcoming race at Phoenix, arguably the most important one of the season. During an interview, Gibbs told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio,“I think it always concerns you anytime you have a motor issue. We feel like, this morning, we went through everything that happened and got all the parts out and we have a plan and strategy where we end up in a good position and it doesn’t come back to us this next week in Phoenix.”“We have those parts, and anytime you have valve spring issues, they come in batches and we think we have that covered,” he further assured.All eyes are now on Phoenix Raceway, which will host this coming Sunday’s race, also the last of the 2025 season. Scheduled for November 2, the 312-lap event will be televised on Peacock (3:30 pm ET onwards) with live radio updates on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
