“What’s that mean?”: Ex-NASCAR driver ‘disturbed’ by Joe Gibbs’ handling of Denny Hamlin-Ty Gibbs controversy

Former NASCAR driver Kyle Petty responded to Joe Gibbs’ stance on the recent on-track feud between Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs. It all happened during last Sunday’s playoff race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

There was a point when Denny Hamlin and Ty Gibbs were battling for 11th, that too over 10 laps. Gibbs is not a playoff driver, so one might wonder why he went so hard on his teammate, who was racing for the championship.

Although the drivers didn’t confront each other on pit road, NASCAR fans expected an intervention from the JGR leadership. But as Petty highlighted, team owner Joe Gibbs didn’t take any responsibility.

“What disturbs me is what Joe Gibbs said,” Petty said. “He said, it's not about me, it's about the drivers. What does that mean? I thought he was 'Coach' Gibbs!”

Ty Gibbs got wrecked, resulting in his third DNF of the season. Denny Hamlin, however, managed to salvage a 12th-place finish whilst picking up 28 points on the way. Hamlin currently sits fifth in the championship standings with a 27-point cushion on the cutoff line.

30 races into the scene, the Joe Gibbs driver has amassed five wins, 12 top-fives, and 15 top-20s. In his 645 laps led, the Tampa, Florida native has recorded an average finish of 13.724.

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“He's not been a great teammate”- NASCAR Hall of Famer reacts to Ty Gibbs’ on-track scuffle with Denny Hamlin

Several NASCAR pundits, including two-time Xfinity Series champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr., commented on the Denny Hamlin-Ty Gibbs feud, which happened at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last Sunday.

Reflecting on the incident during an episode of his NASCAR podcast, Dale Earnhardt Jr. said,

“Was it necessary for Denny to wreck him into the wall? Um, nah, probably not, but damn it, gotta look at Ty's history. He's not been a great teammate at times.”

“I'm have a hard time understanding like what was his what his motive. What was his motive? So Denny is right in saying, 'Look man, you know, you're not in the playoffs. we are. You're our teammate.' Like, you'll totally let him go,”‘he added.

Denny Hamlin wanted the JGR leadership to do the needful. In a release, the driver said,

“What I want to happen is leadership (to) step in and tell us, what do you want us to do?" Hamlin said. "If you want us all to just race each other cut-throat, no matter what your position is in the stature of the standings, we can definitely do that.”

For now, all eyes are on Kansas Speedway, which will host this coming Sunday’s playoff race. Fans can watch the race on USA (28th September, 3 pm ET onwards) or listen to its live radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.