Ty Gibbs Last Piece of the Puzzle for Toyota, JGR, 23XI Racing

Today’s announcement from 23XI Racing solved a couple of the big remaining questions surrounding silly season, but there is still one big move expected to come very soon. The deal, which shouldn’t surprise anyone, will be Ty Gibbs going to Joe Gibbs Racing to take over the No. 18 Toyota.

Kyle Busch added to an already impressive resume of the No. 18 car by winning two championships during his time there. Dale Jarrett won the Daytona 500 in the 18 and Bobby Labonte was the first driver to win a Cup title with that number. Kyle’s move to Richard Childress Racing next year opened the window for another driver to add to the legacy.

That opportunity will go to Gibbs, who has been filling in for Kyle’s brother Kurt, who has been out since July 23 after suffering his concussion in a crash at Pocono. The 23XI Racing team is co-owned by Denny Hamlin, who will now be Ty’s new teammate at the organization that his grandfather owns.

If all of that sounds confusing, that is because it is. Gibbs could have stayed in the No. 45 for one year. He could have moved to the No. 23 depending on sponsorship. He could have even waited one more year as he tries to win an Xfinity championship this season. Now his path seems to be set in stone.

It took the majority of the season for Kyle to make his decision, but his brother’s condition held things up in the air for even longer. He eventually made his decision, and RCR handed him the keys to Tyler Reddick’s No. 8 car. With Reddick already signed to join the 23XI team in 2024, the only logical decision was to come to a buyout agreement so that both sides could just move on.

This wasn’t the way that Reddick wanted it to happen, but he is just excited to be able to focus on the 2023 season at his new home. "The circumstances resulting in the seat being available are very unfortunate, but I am really excited to start my journey with 23XI Racing one year early," Reddick said. With all of that settled, it is clear that JGR will soon announce the Gibbs move.

With Gibbs in the fold, the four-car team now has a balanced mixture of youth and experience. Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr each have 18 years of experience in Cup, with a combined 79 race wins between them. Truex has one championship and finished runner-up in three of the last four seasons. Hamlin is still chasing his first title but has been in the Championship Four race in each of the last three years.

Christopher Bell is also in pursuit of his first title, at 27 years old. Gibbs just turned 20 this month, and seems destined for success in the Cup series. Time will tell, but he certainly will have all the tools at his disposal starting next season. Ty has 12 Cup races under his belt already, and will start 19th tomorrow.