NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Wearing his new, sparkling NASCAR Xfinity Series champion’s ring and sporting a pair of stylish sneakers, 20-year-old Ty Gibbs offered smiles and cherished recollections of his 2022 championship season.
He calmly asked reporters to focus on the racing topic, saying he did not feel comfortable yet responding to questions about the tragic loss of his father, Joe Gibbs Racing Vice Chairman Coy Gibbs, 49, who passed away in his sleep in Phoenix after Ty’s impressive championship trophy hoist there just hours earlier.
“I’ve been doing good, thank you for asking, definitely appreciate you guys,” Gibbs said, addressing the subject immediately. “Right now, I’m not going to touch on that subject at all, just going to stick with the racing questions.”
Gibbs said he had been absolutely committed to coming to Nashville to celebrate his and the team’s achievement. Only two weeks ago, the JGR team – owned by his grandfather, NASCAR Hall of Famer Joe Gibbs – formally announced that Gibbs will drive the No. 54 Toyota in the NASCAR Cup Series full-time in 2023.
“Definitely going to be fun,” said Gibbs, speaking with the media for the first time since his championship press conference on Nov. 5. He said he’s devoted a lot of time to learning the NASCAR Cup Series car on the SIM and feels the 15 races he got to compete in during his 2022 fill-in for the injured Kurt Busch in the 23XI Racing Toyota will be a substantial boost to his rookie season next year.
“Definitely a huge benefit for sure,” Gibbs said. “I’m very thankful to be put in that opportunity. Again, thank you to (team co-owners) Denny (Hamlin) and Michael (Jordan) for the opportunity. It was really cool.”
Of the unexpected chance to get some seat time in the Cup car in advance of his move up to the series, Gibbs said: “Going back and forth and double-duty and racing for the championship in one series, it was a lot, but I did feel like I got comfortable with it (the Cup car). I’m thankful to have had the experience.”
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Newly-crowned NASCAR Cup Series champion Joey Logano spoke with the media gathered in downtown Nashville Thursday morning for the highly-anticipated NASCAR Awards Ceremony scheduled for later that evening and televised Saturday evening at 8 p.m. ET on Peacock.
Among things Logano said he was most looking forward to as champion was the chance to both read and contribute again to the “Champion’s Diary” – a private record of handwritten notes passed on yearly from one NASCAR Cup Series champion to the next. It’s a tightly-guarded tradition and one that Logano – now a two-time series champion – wishes had started decades ago.
“I can’t wait to read it again,” the driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford said with a huge smile.
“Some are kind of quick and simple, but it’s very interesting to read it, and it’s cool because it’s a real secret. It’s kind of like an unwritten rule. You can’t take pictures of it and post it. It’s a thing that only the championship drivers know and have read and seen and heard the stories. It’s a cool thing.
“Every time I get it, I’m so nervous. I’m like, don’t spill anything on this. Don’t lose it. It would suck to be the guy who loses the book. It would really be bad. I get nervous, I put it in the safe right away. I won’t see this for a year, that’s what I do.”
As of Thursday morning, Logano had not yet received the book from 2021 series champion Kyle Larson, who conceded last week, that he had not crafted his message to Logano quite yet. Kevin Harvick, the 2014 series champion, smiled when asked about the tradition, saying he’s glad the champions have not shared details of the various messages inside the book.
The tradition began when 2010 champ Jimmie Johnson, now a seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, first left a message for 2011 champion Tony Stewart. Stewart passed along words for 2012 champion Brad Keselowski and so on ever since.
“It’s a congratulatory message from one champion to the next, it’s kind of that passing the torch of ‘great work this year, great job,’ ” two-time series champion Kyle Busch said, recalling specifically the message he left for 2020 champion Chase Elliott.
“I remember him from him being a little kid,” Busch said. “Honestly, I remember watching him on TV being a little kid with his dad (NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott), like [Kyle’s son] Brexton is now.”
“I think Jimmie did a great thing getting it started,” Busch said, adding with a grin. “It probably definitely should have started 30 years prior, at least. It would have been a lot of good stories, I’m sure. It would have been pretty cool.”
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Denny Hamlin provided an offseason update heading into what will be a contract year for him, saying Thursday that he’s hopeful to return to Joe Gibbs Racing after the 2023 campaign.
Hamlin’s remarks came before Thursday evening’s NASCAR Awards festivities at Nashville’s Music City Center, where Joey Logano will be honored as this year’s Cup Series champion. Hamlin confirmed during his morning availability that contracts are up for both him and longtime sponsor FedEx after the 2023 season.
“Certainly, I’ve always wanted to finish my career at JGR,” Hamlin said, “and I’m optimistic that will be the case.”
Hamlin has driven for Coach Joe Gibbs’ No. 11 team since the beginning of his Cup Series career in 2005, a successful stretch that’s totaled 48 victories in 614 starts. The 42-year-old veteran won twice last season and placed fifth in the final standings, ending a streak of three straight Championship 4 appearances.
But Hamlin has broadened his reach in recent years, expanding into team ownership with 23XI Racing – a collaborative effort with co-owner Michael Jordan that had its on-track debut in 2021. That team grew to a two-car outfit last year, with drivers Kurt Busch and Bubba Wallace each scoring wins for the organization.
Hamlin said he anticipated a moment where he would transition to a full-time role on the ownership side, but that the decision on when to hang up his helmet would not be predicated on his involvement with 23XI.
“Well, there’ll be a time where my attention will be more needed as a team owner than a driver, but it’s going to be on my terms and when I want it to happen and when I think it needs to happen,” Hamlin said. “But I don’t think it … I don’t foresee ownership expediting my retirement. I think that my retirement will be a totally independent decision, regardless of where we’re at with the race team.”
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Stewart-Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick said his racing future beyond the 2023 season will be determined in advance of this year’s season-opening Daytona 500, which will kick off Harvick’s 23rd consecutive year at the sport’s highest level.
“I think it could go either way at this particular point,” Harvick said Thursday while in Nashville for the industry’s Champions Week celebration.
“Right now I’ll know that answer before we get to Daytona,” Harvick said when asked about driving beyond the 2023 season, which will also serve as NASCAR’s 75-year anniversary season. “I don’t really have a clear answer on that right now. I think as we get to Daytona, I know 100 percent that we will have a direction.”
Harvick is entering his 10th season driving for Stewart-Haas, where he’s won 37 races and the 2014 Cup Series championship. He previously raced at Richard Childress Racing from 2001-13, earning an additional 23 race wins during that time.
All told, Harvick, 46, sits tied for ninth with fellow active driver Kyle Busch on NASCAR’s all-time Cup Series wins list with 60. He’s 10 starts away from reaching No. 800 in his Cup Series career, a feat achieved by only nine other drivers in NASCAR’s history.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – With one of the longest-running relationships in racing history, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and NASCAR today announced a new multi-year agreement renewing Goodyear’s position as the exclusive tire for NASCAR’s top three national series.
The agreement continues Goodyear’s designation as the “Official Tire of NASCAR,” as well as the title sponsor of the annual Goodyear 400, NASCAR’s Official Throwback Weekend Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway.
“From our manufacturing plants to offices around the world, racing is ingrained in our culture, and the importance of our relationship with NASCAR is reflected in the quality, performance and engineering we put into every Goodyear Eagle race tire,” said Richard J. Kramer, chairman, chief executive officer and president at Goodyear. “Our performance on the race track plays an active role in the success of the sport and inspires the development of our consumer tires, fueling our commitment to take performance and innovation to the next level.”
For nearly 70 years, NASCAR has served as a proving ground for generations of Goodyear Racing tire engineers, innovating, preparing and supplying tires that meet the most grueling and demanding conditions at the track. The unique technology that withstands and performs in race conditions also informs development and differentiates Goodyear’s consumer tires.
“Goodyear has been a trusted partner to the NASCAR industry since 1954, playing a critical role in our shared pursuit to deliver the best racing in the world,” said Steve Phelps, president of NASCAR. “For more than 25 years, Goodyear Eagle tires have been the only component that connects the stock car to the racetrack. Our continued partnership will allow us to push boundaries and innovate our racing product for generations to come.”
Goodyear and NASCAR’s nearly 70-year relationship is built on shared values of competition and innovation. As the sport evolved, so have Goodyear Eagle race tires, leading to the introduction of new tire technology like the racing slick in 1972, the radial tire in 1989, the multi-zone tread design in 2013 and the development of the 18-inch Goodyear Racing Eagle tire used on NASCAR’s Next Gen stock car. Fittingly, Darlington Raceway – one of the Cup Series’ oldest active tracks – is also home to the Goodyear 400 and many of Goodyear’s milestones in innovation, including the brand’s first official NASCAR tire test in 1954.
Goodyear produces more than 100,000 tires for NASCAR’s top three series every year, and each one is hand-built by Goodyear associates in Akron, Ohio – Goodyear’s global headquarters. To learn more about Goodyear Racing, visit www.Goodyear.com/Racing.
Editor’s note: With Champion’s Week in Nashville ongoing, NASCAR.com will look back at every playoff round of the 2022 season in all three national series.
Championship Race: At Phoenix Raceway, Nov. 6
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Winner: Joey Logano
Key highlights: Logano’s No. 22 team had the most time to prepare for the title race and capitalized, scoring the Busch Light Pole Award and leading 187 of 312 laps en route to his second NASCAR Cup Series championship. Contact between Ross Chastain and Chase Elliott eliminated Elliott from title contention while Chastain nearly chased down Logano to fight for the title, but issues on a late pit stop erased any hope for Christopher Bell to make his case.
Editor’s note: With Champion’s Week in Nashville ongoing, NASCAR.com will look at every playoff round of the 2022 season in all three national series.
CHAMPIONSHIP RACE: At Phoenix Raceway, Nov. 4
Christian Petersen | Getty Images
WINNER: Zane Smith
KEY HIGHLIGHTS: All four Championship 4 drivers — Ty Majeski, Zane Smith, Chandler Smith and Ben Rhodes — had their respective time to shine in the desert. However, after lining up behind Rhodes during a two-lap shootout in overtime, Zane found enough space and speed to hold off the defending champion and take home the title in his third championship attempt.
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (November 30, 2022) – Comcast announced Jes Ferreira as the 2022 Comcast Community Champion of the Year Award, the eighth to receive the annual award. Among all the turmoil of the pandemic, Ferreira looked for an opportunity to give back. Despite her heavy workload, she decided to take on an even heavier challenge, becoming a foster parent to two young girls.
Zack Albert | NASCAR Studios
“I am overwhelmed, humbled, and blown away to be recognized as the Comcast Community Champion of the Year,” said Jes Ferreira, 2022 Comcast Community Champion. “The amount of support this will provide for the Charlotte foster families ensures the best services for these children. I hope this sheds light on the foster community and encourages everyone to support in many different ways.”
Ferreira originally earned a foster license to become a foster parent for one child, but a few months later, the child’s younger sibling needed a new foster home. Although Ferreira, Senior Director of Live Shows for CSM Production, already had a crazy work schedule which included traveling to the race track most weekends on top of fostering one child as a single parent, she knew without a doubt these two siblings deserved to be together while in foster care. Now two young siblings going through the most trying time in their lives have been reunited thanks to Ferreira.
On any given day, there are nearly 424,000 children in foster care in the United States. In 2019, over 672,000 children spent time in U.S. foster care. On average, children remain in state care for more than a year and a half, and five percent of children in foster care have languished there for five or more years.
Ferreira’s affiliated charity is Foster Village Charlotte (FVC), an organization that allows foster parents to connect with and support each other. FVC collaborates with 16 private foster parent licensing agencies, local government, child welfare organizations and the community to serve families holistically and represent the foster family voice to Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services (DSS).
“Jes encompasses everything the Comcast Community Champion of the Year stands for. Anyone that is at the track knows how dedicated Jes is to the sport of NASCAR, and we are so glad we expanded the eligibility for this award so we can uncover and honor the compassion, selflessness and generosity Jes provides off the track, and that is what makes this honor so special, ” said Matt Lederer, Comcast’s Vice President, Brand Partnerships and Amplification.
Ferreira was chosen by a panel comprised of Comcast and NASCAR executives, as well as Curtis Francois, the 2021 Comcast Community Champion, who received the award for his work with the Raceway Gives Foundation.
For the first time, Comcast opened the eligibility for anyone in the NASCAR community with a 2022 annual credential or NASCAR full-season license. With this expansion, Comcast is now able to share these exceptional stories.
Josh Williams, driver of the No. 92 DGM Racing car for the NASCAR Xfinity Series and Sherry Pollex, founder of Sherry Strong, were selected as finalists and will be awarded $30,000 each towards their respective selected charities – the Ryan Seacrest Foundation and Sherry Strong.
Comcast has a long track record of community service, aiding in the advancement of local organizations, developing programs and partnerships, mobilizing resources to connect people and inspiring positive and substantive change. To learn more about these efforts, visit the Comcast Community Impact site.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Celebrating a season full of first-time winners, a popular repeat champion and all the makings of a bright future, the NASCAR industry arrives in Nashville this week to officially crown Team Penske’s Joey Logano as the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Champion and highlight a year of big personalities and high achievement on track.
The NASCAR Awards and Champion Celebration will be held Thursday night at Nashville’s Music City Center and streamed Saturday (8 p.m. ET, Peacock), with country music star Erin Kinsey headlining the evening’s entertainment.
The 2018 champion Logano, who now joins Kyle Busch as the only multi-time NASCAR Cup Series champion among active drivers, will be feted along with NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Ty Gibbs and Camping World Truck Series champ Zane Smith.
The Most Popular Driver from each series – as selected in a fan vote – will also be revealed in what is always a highly-anticipated evening of celebration. Chase Elliott, the 2020 season champion, is the four-time defending winner of the award in the NASCAR Cup Series.
“We are delighted to bring the celebration to Nashville once again, as the city’s energy and passion for motorsports never cease to amaze us,” NASCAR’s Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer Pete Jung said in announcing the return of the awards event to Nashville for the third year.
From historic venues like the Grand Ole Opry and the Country Music Hall of Fame to honky-tonks and famous barbecue at every corner, Nashville has quickly proven to be a favorite for the NASCAR industry and the sport’s loyal fans. Many show up hoping to meet their favorite drivers – all eager to celebrate a remarkable 2022 season.
Logano, 32, driver of the No. 22 Team Penske Ford, dominated the Nov. 6 NASCAR Cup Series finale at Phoenix Raceway – leading 187 of the 312 laps – to claim his second series title by besting the Championship 4 of Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell and Hendrick Motorsports’ Elliott. It marked the first time either Chastain or Bell had earned a place in the Championship 4 – both advancing thanks to clutch performances in the dramatic penultimate race of the schedule at Martinsville Speedway.
Similarly, Gibbs, the 20-year-old driver of the No. 54 JGR Toyota, led a race-best 125 of the 200-laps at Phoenix to definitively claim his first major NASCAR title in just his first full-time Xfinity Series season. JR Motorsports teammates Noah Gragson, Justin Allgaier and Josh Berry rounded out the quartet to advance to the final round.
Smith, 23, who drives the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford, took his first NASCAR championship in the Camping World Truck Series after finishing runner-up for the big trophy in the last two seasons. Kyle Busch Motorsports’ Chandler Smith and ThorSport Racing teammates Ben Rhodes – the 2021 series champion – and Ty Majeski rounded out the series’ title contenders.
The championship races in all three national series proved as compelling and exciting as the season they capped, providing much eager anticipation for this week’s opportunity to celebrate.
The NASCAR Cup Series saw 19 different winners in the debut of the Next Gen car – the most diverse winner’s slate since 2001, tying a modern-day record. It notably included a remarkable five first-time race winners, including Chastain, his Trackhouse Racing teammate Daniel Suárez, Team Penske rookie Austin Cindric – who won the season-opening Daytona 500 – Richard Childress Racing’s Tyler Reddick and Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe.
It all bodes well for the competitive future of the sport with so much to celebrate this week in Nashville – a rare repeat champion in Logano and a pair of young first-timers in Gibbs and Smith. Strike up the band and cue the talent, Music City is ready. And so is NASCAR.
Nothing has come easy for Layne Riggs from the moment his auto racing career began.
A veteran in late model stock car competition despite being just 20, the second-generation competitor from Bahama, North Carolina, has fought for every victory with a small operation, all while waiting for the right opportunity to follow in his father Scott Riggs’ footsteps as a driver in one of NASCAR’s top three divisions.
The decision to bet on himself by going for a NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series title paid off for Riggs, who joined a long list of notable national champions with a stellar season that saw him claim 16 victories at five tracks, as well as a track championship at Virginia’s South Boston Speedway.
Going for the national championship was challenging for Riggs on several fronts. He admitted being able to reflect on and cherish what he accomplished in 2022 with his team has been equal parts cathartic and validating.
“It’s been great to celebrate with my team and bask in our glory,” Riggs said. “In the moment when we were winning all the races, it was hard to celebrate anything, as we had to focus on the next day of racing. You couldn’t enjoy the time, but we had a huge team party, and it was great to share stories and celebrate what we did, especially since we’ll probably never do this again.”
Even though he has a familiar last name, Riggs does not see himself much different than the blue-collar drivers who dominate short tracks along the East Coast.
Most of the crew members who assist the Riggs family with their late model stock car program are volunteers, all of whom have worked tirelessly to keep the cars competitive with other top-tier organizations that include JR Motorsports and Sellers Racing Inc.
Being a student at UNC Charlotte only served to complicate matters for Riggs as he poured every ounce of energy into defeating defending Weekly Series champion Peyton Sellers, but he managed to find the perfect balance by constantly communicating with his team about what he needed to be comfortable in his car.
Layne Riggs (99) had to battle Peyton Sellers (26) all year for the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series title, with Riggs ultimately prevailing by four points. (Joe Chandler/South Boston Speedway)
The maturity and composure Riggs needed to stay focused amid his hectic schedule came about by perfecting his race craft against many talented competitors, which included current NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Josh Berry, Bobby McCarty, Deac McCaskill and Jared Fryar.
Without those people to lean on in his developmental period, Riggs believes he would never have gotten close to the Weekly Series crown.
“This past season served as my final exam for late model stock racing,” Riggs said. “I’ve learned so much from all the veterans out there, but I had to apply all the knowledge. You don’t really see that growth until you look back and see all the steps you’ve made, but every aspect of myself has gotten better.”
In the middle of his pursuit for the national championship, Riggs finally got the opportunity to make his NASCAR national series debut by signing a three-race deal with Halmar Friesen Racing in the Craftsman Truck Series.
Riggs wasted no time showing the broader NASCAR fan base the talent he possesses. During his first race at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, after starting 23rd, Riggs patiently climbed his way through the field and challenged many of the best drivers in the Truck Series before ultimately settling for a seventh-place finish.
The next two Truck Series appearances for Riggs saw him carry over the momentum from his performance at IRP. While he did not eclipse his career-best finish, Riggs qualified fourth at Richmond Raceway and second for the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, where he led five laps after passing eventual Truck Series champion Zane Smith shortly after the initial start.
Riggs is currently working on securing the necessary funding to compete in the Truck Series full-time in 2023. Details are still being sorted out, but Riggs hopes to at least get approval for the opener at Daytona International Speedway before seeing how the rest of the year turns out from a financial standpoint.
A more active presence in the Truck Series means Riggs will move on from the discipline that shaped him into the driver he is today, but he still plans to compete in a handful of late model stock car events when he has free time.
“I’ll probably do the Josh Berry schedule where I race [late model stocks] on off weekends,” Riggs said. “There won’t be a set schedule, so I obviously won’t be running for any championships, but you’ll definitely see me at some short tracks just having fun.”
With a national championship under his belt, Layne Riggs is preparing to embark on what he hopes will be a full NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series schedule next year. (Joe Chandler/South Boston Speedway)
Riggs hopes the success and notoriety he enjoyed in 2022 is a positive sign for other blue-collar racers looking to break into NASCAR’s top ranks.
Throughout his late model stock car career, Riggs has come across plenty of drivers he knows would excel in NASCAR’s top series if given the right opportunity. Having been in that crowd himself, Riggs would love to see those same veterans follow a similar path, and he believes ongoing changes in the industry might one day allow them to do so.
For now, Riggs intends to represent the Southeast short track industry as both a Weekly Series champion and a Truck Series competitor. He anticipates a rigorous learning curve during his first year in the division, particularly when it comes to figuring out aerodynamics and going up against the diverse Truck Series roster.
“In the late model world, you have your select veterans that are always up at the front racing each other,” Riggs said. “When you go to the Truck Series, there are so many more of them. The best from the grassroots made it to the Truck Series, so there’s going to be a lot of competition. I felt like I was the best in my area, so I think I’m up to the task.”
Plenty of obstacles lie ahead for Riggs as he transitions into a new phase of his career, but he is ready to embrace the pending adversity and show that his national championship is the first of many NASCAR accomplishments to come.
