“Never lost belief”: Chase Briscoe’s crew chief reflects after punching his first Phoenix ticket with former SHR driver

Chase Briscoe's crew chief, James Small, went over the 'rollercoaster' of emotions after years of near misses and mounting pressure. He shared how his unwavering faith in himself and his team led to the final four berth.

Small is no stranger to race wins, as he's won eight times during his stint with Martin Truex Jr. The two reached the championship race back in 2021, but haven't achieved the same in the Next Gen Era.

With Chase Briscoe, however, Small has once again made it to the finale. The No.19 team has been a formidable force this season, logging seven poles and an impressive tally of 15 top-5s. Moreover, two of Briscoe's three wins have come from the playoffs alone.

Sunday's race at Talladega Superspeedway witnessed a thrilling finish where Briscoe edged out Todd Gilliland for a final-lap victory. In a post-race press conference, Small reflected on the journey thus far.

"I know I'm not immune to the fact that people like to question, you know, when we have years like last year, we were so close to winning many races but we didn't win any. People have very short memories of the success we've had before and you know, it was a little bit of a rollercoaster when you look through 21 to 22 to 23 to 24," he said via NASCAR's official website.

"But I never lost belief in myself or in my team. I always had the support of everybody back at JGR. I knew if we had this opportunity, you know, it was gonna take a little bit, but we were gonna be a force to be reckoned with," he added.

Chase Briscoe previously mentioned that James Small is a workhorse who lets out his emotions on Victory Lane. JGR now has two playoff drivers in the title decider. Notably, both drivers are in their first season with a new crew chief, as Denny Hamlin was paired up with Chris Gayle after his longtime crew chief got promoted within JGR.

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Chase Briscoe thanks Ty Gibbs for aiding in Talladega win

Chase Briscoe faced tough competition from 23XI Racing's Bubba Wallace on the final lap. However, a timely push from Ty Gibbs helped him edge out the Alabama native. The JGR driver narrowly finished ahead by 0.145 seconds.

In a post-race interview with NBC Sports, Briscoe said,

“Ty Gibbs. An incredible teammate there. I honestly wouldn't have won that race without Ty. Just an amazing team effort. I can't believe I won a superspeedway race.”

Gibbs finished in the second row at third, making it his second-best finish this season. Previously, the No.54 driver was criticised by Denny Hamlin for blocking his way at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.