Joe Gibbs reveals cause behind Martinsville mechanical failures, plans for Phoenix

After suffering not one but two major mechanical failures, Coach Joe Gibbs has addressed what the team believes is the cause. Going into NASCAR Championship 4 weekend, Gibbs and his Cup Series organization have work to do.

A mechanical failure is one thing. Two is very concerning. When those two failures happen to your two drivers that are racing for a championship this week, that is almost cause for panic. But Joe Gibbs Racing has been through a lot. They also believe they know the root cause of the issue.

Coach Gibbs was on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio earlier today. He addressed the concerns while calling into the show.

“I think it always concerns you anytime you have a motor issue,” Gibbs said, via Matt Weaver of Motorsport. “We feel like, this morning, we went through everything that happened and got all the parts out, and we have a plan and strategy where we end up in a good position, and it doesn’t come back to us this next week in Phoenix. We have those parts, and anytime you have valve spring issues, they come in batches, and we think we have that covered.”

To put it simply, when teams receive parts like their valve springs, they come in batches with the same part number on them. Joe Gibbs Racing has identified the part number of the failed valve springs. So, they know which batch the faulty valve springs came from. This should allow them to ensure the quality and strength of their engines at Phoenix.

Joe Gibbs should still be concerned at Phoenix

Two engine failures a week ahead of the Championship 4 is far from ideal. While Joe Gibbs feels as though the issue has been identified and dealt with, this isn’t the first time that Toyota has had engine problems this year. It also didn’t help that 23XI Racing driver Riley Herbst also appeared to have issues.

Going into the race, JGR and its drivers have to be confident in their cars and engines. So, this should help ease concerns. The first part of fixing the problem is identifying what caused it. But in the back of their minds, the drivers and crew chiefs are going to be wondering if their engine is simply going to go up in smoke.

Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin should be well-positioned to win at Phoenix. JGR has been really good at Phoenix. Both drivers have won at the track before. Then you have the surging duo of Kyle Larson and William Byron at Hendrick Motorsports. Briscoe and Hamlin will have their hands full enough without dealing with mechanical failures.