● The green colors of Interstate Batteries will adorn Ty Gibbs’ car one final time for 2024 this weekend at the Charlotte Roval. In all, Interstate Batteries will have 11 primary sponsorships on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule in 2024 spread amongst the four Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) Cup Series drivers. The final race for Interstate Batteries this season will be in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, when Christopher Bell will driver a co-branded car with Dewalt and Interstate Batteries sharing the space one final time this season on his No. 20 Camry. Bell has high hopes for making the Championship 4 for the third year in a row.
● Gibbs heads to the Charlotte Roval 13th in the driver standings with 2,144 points as the schedule heads to the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval with five races remaining in the 2024 season. Gibbs made the playoffs for the first time in 2024 but exited after the opening Round of 16.
● No Sophomore Slump for Gibbs: This weekend marks Gibbs’ third opportunity to race on the Charlotte Roval in a Cup Series car and also the North Carolina natives 83rd career Cup Series start. So far in 2024, Gibbs has had a strong season, bringing home one pole, eight top-five finishes and 12 top-10s in the 31 races contested so far this season. Gibbs has led 394 laps total – a career high – as he has come ever so close to his first victory in NASCAR’s top series.
● Roval History: Gibbs has made two career Cup Series starts on the Charlote Roval with a best career finish of fourth there last year in Interstate Batteries colors. Gibbs has also made two Roval starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, leading 24 laps before bringing home a best finish of second in 2022 en route to the Xfinity Series championship.
● At the age of 19 years, 9 months and 20 days, Gibbs made his first career NASCAR Cup Series start in the July 2022 race at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway for 23XI Racing. He became the 37th driver younger than 20 years of age to make a Cup Series start. He started at the rear of the field but completed all 160 laps on his way to an impressive 16th-place finish. Best of his 15 Cup Series in 2022 was his 10th-place result Aug. 7 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. Since then, Gibbs has had a career high finish of third four different times in 2024, as he has come close to tasting victory at NASCAR’s top level.
● Dazzling Debut: Gibbs was victorious in his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut in the February 2021 race on the road course at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. He led 14 of the 56 laps and became the youngest driver to win an Xfinity Series road-course race at 18 years, 4 months and 16 days. The native of Charlotte, North Carolina, also became the second-youngest winner in Xfinity Series history behind Joey Logano, who won in June 2008 at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta at the age of 18 years, 21 days.
| Ty Gibbs, Driver of the No. 54 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry XSE |
You have picked up incrementally everywhere you go this season. What is the reason for that, and what are your thoughts about racing at the Roval?
“I think that the experience is so big, especially for somebody like me who is so young and doesn’t have a lot of experience. It is so important and good to have. In your first years of experiencing something, you just learn so much as you keep going. The Roval has been a good place for me and I feel like we keep gaining there each time we go back. I’m hoping for another good run there and getting out front and having a chance at our first win. We have Interstate Batteries on our car this weekend and the first win would be extra special with them on board with us.”
What has been the biggest change for you in your move from the Xfinity Series to the Cup Series?
“I think you could say this is about all the top sports and motorsports in the world, talking to some of my friends that made the jump from college to pro football, it is just a huge jump, and everyone is so much better. It is a whole different environment. It is all different. It is all part of going from semipro to pro – you have to make that jump and that is hard. You just go every week and try to learn and you hope the end of these races play out the right way and we can bring home a win.”
Do you enjoy racing on the road courses?
“I really like the road courses. They’ve always been really fun, and the Roval is a place we were really strong at last year. I think this car is built for road courses. It is a lot of fun. I love going to Watkins Glen and the Roval. The Glen didn’t work out like we had anticipated, but hoping things do this weekend in Charlotte. We will see what happens.”
You’ve now raced on the Roval in the Xfinity Series and also the last two seasons in the Cup Series. What are your expectations for this weekend?
“Excited about the Roval. I do enjoy road-course racing, plus it is a home race, which will be nice. Good to have Interstate Batteries on the car for the final time this year. Norm (Miller, Chairman Emeritus) has been a longtime family friend, and Lain (Hancock, CEO/President) had been great, too. Always fun to have those guys on board with us any time we can. Hopefully we can give them a great run.”
How much more do you feel like you have this year when you go to your best tracks versus last year?
“I think just having more experience has really helped. The Charlotte Roval – I’ve had a bit more track time with Xfinity and running there with 23XI back in 2022. It is helpful to have experience there. I feel like it would be a lot different if we had more practice like they did years ago. You just have to use the valuable sim time you can get, study and go after it.”
● Event: Bank of America Roval 400 (Round 32 of 36)
● Time/Date: 2 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Oct. 13
● Location: Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway Roval
● Layout: 2.28-mile, 17-turn road course
● Laps/Miles: 109 laps, 252.88 miles
● Format: Stage 1: 25 laps / Stage 2: 25 laps / Final Stage: 59 laps
● TV/Radio: NBC / PRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
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