Tony Gibson, crew chief for the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 41 Chevrolet driven by championship contender Kurt Busch, is recovering from an emergency appendectomy in advance of this weekend's on-track activity at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Gibson, 50, posted Wednesday on Facebook that he returned home Tuesday night and was recuperating after undergoing the procedure.
"Just really sore today," Gibson wrote after giving thanks for the well-wishes he'd received. "Who needs an appendix anyway????"
He later tweeted Thursday that he would be at the track, then noted Friday morning that Busch sent his plane back to North Carolina to get the crew chief to New Hampshire.
A Stewart-Haas Racing representative said that team engineer John Klausmeier would serve as interim crew chief and that Greg Zipadelli, the organization's vice president of competition, would have "an increased presence with the No. 41 team."
Gibson joined forces with Busch starting with the last three races of 2014, Busch's first year with Stewart-Haas. The duo produced two victories in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series' regular season this year.
Busch opened the Chase last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway with a third-place finish, surrendering the lead to eventual winner Denny Hamlin on the race's final restart. The result placed Busch fifth in the 16-driver Chase standings.