M&M’s colors returned to the NASCAR grid for the first time in four years on Saturday night, partnering with Joe Gibbs Racing to honor the legacy of the late Kyle Busch.
Ty Gibbs spent pre-race with the Busch family, and walked out to driver introductions with Brexton Busch by his side. There was a real chance he could go out there and win it all, as Gibbs was the most recent Cup winner at Bristol entering the evening.
He certainly made his presence know, leading 120 laps, but Victory Lane eluded him after a chaotic final restart. He had an awkward run-in with Alex Bowman while trying to lap the Hendrick Motorsports driver, but even after sustaining minor damage, he remained in command of the race.
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Photo by: Jeffrey Vest / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The race went back green for the final time with nine laps to go, and Carson Hocevar was side-by-side with Gibbs for the race lead. They slammed doors as Hocevar cleared him, only for Gibbs to push Hocevar up the track into the next corner.
Suddenly, he was three-wide with Hocevar ahead, Kyle Larson to his outside, and Joey Logano to his inside. Hocevar got into the wall moments after a shot from Larson, and suddenly Gibbs had another shot at the lead. He drove off deep into Turn 3, touching doors with Hocevar again as Logano quietly drove by on the inside.
That, ultimately, was the pass for the win. Logano claimed the checkered flag for himself and Gibbs faded back to fourth. It was a good night overall, but the victory fell from his grasp with just seven laps to go.
“It was so much fun,” said Gibbs, looking at the positives. “That car was just a blast to drive. I had so much fun tonight.
“It was an honor to drive the M&M’s Camry and it was something I’ll never forget. That was such a fun race. Unfortunate that we lost it. I just tried to stay up a little bit too long in 1 and 2 that shut the 77 off, and then the 5 got in there and we just missed it a little bit.
“But I had a blast tonight and it was so much fun. We’ll just keep working hard and keep getting better.”
But where was the race lost, exactly?
“I just needed to get down in (Turn) 1 and 2 better and I just missed it. It was unfortunate but we’ll keep getting better and we’ll keep working hard. Got great points tonight. I hope everybody had a great time. I thought it was a pretty great show.
“Unfortunately a lot of people went a lap down, but I feel like the 12 [Ryan Blaney] and I and the 77 [Hocevar] put a great show on, and it was just so much fun. Such a fun race. Through Stage 1 and Stage 2 we were pretty buried and worked our way up the whole time. I had such a blast. We’ll just keep getting better.”
Gibbs also had a small role to play in the post-race brawl between Blaney and Hocevar, smiling as he tossed a water battle into the center of the fight. He had his own run-in with Hocevar on the cooldown lap, but it was nowhere near dramatic as the fisticuffs that followed.
Racing for Rowdy
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, talking with Brexton Busch before driver introductions
Photo by: Jeffrey Vest / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
And while he wanted to win, Gibbs noted how this weekend was bigger than him, saying it was “all for them” in reference to the Busch family.
Speaking more on the M&M’s scheme and paying tribute to Kyle Busch, Gibbs added: “It was such a special weekend, especially for M&M’s and for Samantha and their family. I’m just proud to be a part of it and proud to have something to do with it. It was just a blast and we’ll just keep working and keep getting better.”
Earlier in the week, Samantha Busch had noted that Ty has been a ‘big brother’ of sorts to Brexton, as they bonded over their shared grief in suddenly losing their father’s at a young age.
Brexton sat on the No. 54 pit box for most of the race, looking on as the battle for the win played out.
Kyle Busch won a record 23 races at Bristol, with Ty humbly commenting after the race: “Kyle would have made it happen…”
Watch: Gibbs on driving M&M’s Busch tribute at Bristol: ‘Something I’ll never forget’
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