Brad Keselowski and Ty Gibbs’ pit crews' explosive fight sparks a tidal wave of fan frenzy

Tempers flared between the pit crews for Brad Keselowski and Ty Gibbs during Sunday’s (July 13) Cup Series race at Sonoma Raceway, which then led to a shoving match. A 26-second footage showing the same was posted by RFK Racing on X, and fans soon started reacting to it.

All of that happened on Lap 52, near the end of Stage 2, when Gibbs drove his car into his pit stall, clipping Keselowski’s stall on the way. Gibbs’ car seemed to have nearly hit Keselowski’s front tire changer, Telvin McClurkin, who later told TNT Sports that the slight nudge from the No. 54 machine had twisted his wrist and slowed down the RFK Racing driver’s stop.

As soon as Brad Keselowski drove away, McClurkin allegedly walked into Gibbs’ pit box and triggered the shoving session. Although not captured in the video, the fight was interrupted by NASCAR officials.

Soon, comments started pouring in. Some of them seemed to find Gibbs guilty. On that note, a fan wrote,

“Can't swing in like that when there's a man already standing there.”

Meanwhile, another fan blamed Keselowski’s team and wrote,

“Looks like your crew should’ve waited for his car to go by before they came over the wall”

Here are a few other reactions to the incident:

“Ty was wrong,” a fan typed.

“Any other last name and he'd be back in trucks,” added another.

“I understand Ty being frustrated but pit road is no place for that crap. It’s just too dangerous,” someone commented.

“Should have parked him right away and sit out next week! Disgusting behavior!” another wrote.

That being said, a NASCAR spokesperson explained in a release that the No. 6 team should have given the No. 54 car a few extra seconds to drive past their pit stall before barging in. However, the altercation will be further reviewed by the officials during the week.

Trackhouse Racing driver and series rookie Shane van Gisbergen won the 110-lap event, followed by Chase Briscoe, Chase Elliott, Michael McDowell, and Christopher Bell rounding up the top five. Brad Keselowski finished the race in P11, while Gibbs delivered a P7, marking his fifth top-10 of the season.

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Ty Gibbs reacts to the pit-road fracas that involved Brad Keselowski’s tire-changer

Ty Gibbs thought that he had done nothing malicious. He had to drive through Brad Keselowski’s stall to reach his parking spot, as he was the lead car at the time. Speaking with TNT Sports after finishing four spots ahead of the 2012 Cup Series champion, the 22-year-old gave his opinion on the matter.

“By NASCAR's rules, you know, I'm the lead car because I'm in the pit box past where the 6 is and I'm in front of them as well," Gibbs explained (quoted by Zach Sturniolo, nascar.com). “We have these orange lines right there. As you can see, I'm sure they'll show you after… where if I'm behind him, I have to go around those orange lines for it to be the rule. Going in, I have the right-of-way.”

Keselowski’s crew chief, Jeremy Bullins, who had rushed in to mediate the situation, saw nothing wrong with what Gibbs did. He said Keselowski would have done the same thing, so the No. 6 team was good.

Even Joe Gibbs Racing’s Director of Competition, Chris Gabehart, sided with Gibbs, stating that it was indeed the driver’s “right-of-way” to the trailing-box car. He said it was just a really tight spot where Brad Keselowski’s tire changer had jumped in.