"It was a hard pill to swallow": Joe Gibbs Racing unsung warrior A.J. Rosini battles back after terrifying seizure

A.J. Rosini, a crew member for Joe Gibbs Racing, recently opened up about his incredible journey back to the racetrack in 2025. Prior to the start of the season, Rosini suffered a seizure that caused a broken nose, which sidelined him for the first half of the 2025 campaign. However, Rosini has miraculously returned to servicing the #54 JGR Toyota driven by Ty Gibbs.

Rosini spoke in an interview on JGR's YouTube channel about what he remembers from the day he had a seizure. It was a day in February, Rosini said, and as he was in bed with his wife, something felt drastically wrong. Here's what Rosini said as he recounted what happened:

"I was in bed with my wife. I woke up, it was like 7 in the morning, [and I] started feeling kind of weird. I felt like I couldn't breathe. So, I woke her up and told her I was having trouble breathing. And I was like, 'Alright, let's go to the hospital.' She gets up to go to the closet to get some clothes out. I sat up on the edge of the bed, had my head in my hands and everything, and just wiped out."

"Started having a seizure, fell right off the bed, and hit my head on the ground, broke my nose. From what she told me, I was out for about 30 seconds. Came back to it, and I had no idea what had happened."

Rosini ultimately recovered from broken nose prior to the NASCAR Cup Series race at EchoPark Speedway, the second race of the 2025 campaign. However, he got the heart-breaking news from a neurologist that he couldn't return as a pit crew member for another six months due to having a seizure.

"It was a hard pill to swallow," Rosini said.

Ultimately, Rosini returned to the racetrack for the Brickyard 400 in July, but not in his usual position. Rosini was formerly a tire changer for Denny Hamlin's #11 JGR Toyota. In his absence, Austin Maloney, a friend of Rosini's, had proven himself as a tire changer and was ultimately promoted to the spot on Hamlin's team Rosini once filled.

Rosini serviced the #4 Front Row Motorsports Ford, driven by Noah Gragson, for the Brickyard 400 and the following race at Iowa. However, Rosini returned to JGR and is now the tire changer on Ty Gibbs' #54 machine. This Sunday's race at Kansas is Rosini's 10th race back since the seizure.

Joe Gibbs Racing seeks pass through Round of 12

With two races remaining in the Round of 12, Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, and Denny Hamlin are hoping to secure a spot in the upcoming Round of 8. Ahead of Sunday's race at Kansas, the JGR trio sits in prime position to do so.

Bell enters the second race of the Round of 12 fourth in the standings with a 29-point advantage. Meanwhile, Hamlin is 27 points above the cut line, currently fifth in the standings. Briscoe holds the final spot in the Round of 8 with a 12-point buffer over the cutoff.