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Bristol Motor Speedway (Bristol, Tenn.) — The kid finally did it. Make that, the grandkid. Ty Gibbs, grandson of Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs, won his first Cup race in his 131st start, as he led the final 25 laps to capture an overtime victory at Bristol Motor Speedway. It was the 229th Cup victory for Joe Gibbs Racing, which is celebrating its 35th season this year. But it was the first Cup victory by a driver named Gibbs. “It’s a huge deal for us [as a family],” Joe Gibbs said in his post-race news conference. “To have Ty be able to go through everything that he went through — and he went through a lot. Because this is tough, this is tough when you get up here. It’s the best of the best in the world.” His 23-year-old grandson had won races and championships on the way up to the Cup Series but has had a roller-coaster, three-plus-year career at the top level, with two runner-up finishes and 21 top-five finishes. His journey has had its challenges, including his father, Coy Gibbs, dying suddenly the night he won the O’Reilly Series championship in November 2022. The fact he hasn’t gotten into Victory Lane for a team that has a tradition of winning had some critics questioning whether he deserved a ride for the family-owned team. “I feel like I knew I was capable of doing it,” Ty Gibbs said in his post-race news conference. “It’s obviously about putting it together. We’ve had great runs in the past. “People are going to hammer me on my position I’m in. That’s fair. I don’t really care. Just keep working hard. I really love racing, so it’s fun.” Here are my takeaways: 1. Big Win For Ty Gibbs It was a winning drive by Gibbs, who stayed out on old tires and held off Cup champions Ryan Blaney and Kyle Larson, who had pitted with 25 laps remaining (Blaney for four, Larson for two). Blaney had led 190 laps; Larson led 284 laps, but Gibbs had been running near the front. Gibbs didn’t just hold them off one time, he had to do it twice, as a late caution when Kyle Busch turned Riley Herbst resulted in an overtime restart. It was a win that came amid controversy. There’s currently a lawsuit by the team against former competition director Chris Gabehart. Gabehart has alleged that there were a different set of rules for Ty Gibbs than for the other JGR drivers, indicating that Gibbs was not committed. “People can say what they want, can say false things,” Ty Gibbs said. “I don’t really have an issue with it. I’m not big on social media. I just love racing cars. I’m in a blessed position to do this.” 2. Proud Coach Joe Gibbs Joe Gibbs has won Super Bowls as a coach and Cup championships as an owner, but it was a little bit different to see his grandson win. It brought a wave of emotions, as both of his sons who had played roles in the growth of the organization, died at age 49 (J.D. Gibbs died in 2019). “Coy, he guided Ty all the way from go-karts to Cup,” Gibbs said. “I know he’s got a great view of what just happened. “Then his uncle is there, too, J.D. I think about those two guys, everything they did for the race team, for us as a family. We love this. We love NASCAR.” 3. Huge Day For Crew Chief Tyler Allen Gibbs crew chief Tyler Allen started with Gibbs in 2025, and for part of the season, Gabehart sat atop the pit box calling the race and performing some of the crew chief duties. Allen and Ty formed a strong bond last season. And it was Allen’s strategy to leave Gibbs out on old tires that led to the win. “We were focused on building the program,” Allen said in his post-race news conference. “It wasn’t going to be something that got better immediately. I’m a young crew chief. He’s a young driver. The team was a little bit of mess at the beginning of [2025], but we were building. “That started to show up at the end of last year, the last eight races or so. This [season] has built confidence in all of us, me especially on the box, Ty in the car, that we can perform at the level that JGR should perform at. “So to get this win is pretty cool.” 4. Bowman Return Ends Early The start of the race was also notable, as it signaled the return of Alex Bowman to the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 car. Bowman had missed four races because of vertigo, which caused him to get out of the car during the race at Circuit of the Americas last month. He was collected in a wreck that started when Shane van Gisbergen spun. He didn’t have a good day overall. “We just performed really poorly, but at the same time, it’s nice to be back driving a race car,” Bowman told me and other reporters after his mandatory check at the infield medical center. “I appreciate everybody’s support. You guys all know how much I love attention, so I’m glad this week can be over with and I can just go do my job next week without everybody asking me how I feel. “But I feel really good and definitely thankful to be back.” 4 ½. What’s Next The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Kansas Speedway, a 1.5-mile track that, in recent years, has featured some of the best racing at the intermediate tracks. It will be a good test of the Chevrolets to see if they have made gains on that style of track with the new body introduced this season. It is the first intermediate track since Las Vegas, which was four races ago. Can Gibbs make it two in a row? “One win doesn’t change my career, not one bit,” Gibbs said. “I knew I was capable of it. My team, obviously, I know they’re capable of it. … I could win the next five or just win this one and be done for a long time.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Ryan Day hears the noise. In fact, it fuels him in a way that leads him to set his Ohio State roster to such an incredibly high standard. In an appearance on the “Not Just Fooball Podcast,” which is hosted by former Buckeyes star and current Pittsburgh Steelers’ defensive lineman Cameron Hayward, the Ohio State head coach shared that he expects every player who commits to his team to be a top pick in the NFL Draft. “I think it’s across the board at Ohio State,” Day said. “When you come here, you’re coming here to be a first- or second-round pick, regardless of your position. That’s it. Just like if we don’t win games and championships, they’re going to find a new coach. Well, if you’re not a first- or second-rounder, then this probably isn’t the right place for you. That’s just the reality of it.” Ohio State has been a factory at developing first-round picks over the course of the program’s illustrious history. The 95 first-round picks Ohio State has developed are the most of any program. It had seven players picked in the first 45 selections in last year’s draft, and it might have four players get drafted in the top 10 of the 2026 NFL Draft. Still, there are some other notable players in Ohio State’s history who haven’t been picked in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft. National championship-winning quarterback Will Howard was a sixth-round pick in last year’s draft, and 2006 Heisman winner Troy Smith was a fifth-round pick in 2007. But those are seemingly the exceptions that Day is willing to let the Ohio State program live with. Now entering his eighth season as Ohio State’s head coach, Day has placed the bar for his team at the same level that his fan base has. “We embrace the expectations,” Day said. “Nobody is making excuses for the tough schedule next year. Nobody is making excuses for all these different things. That’s it, man. That’s it. That’s never going to change.” Going into every season, Ohio State fans believe the Buckeyes should go undefeated, beat their rival, Michigan and win the national title. And everyone else is waiting for them to slip up in any of those categories. Day knows that anything worse than perfection is failure, but he doesn’t let that control his process. At least, not now. Day learned how to deal with that reality after the Buckeyes lost in the 2019 Fiesta Bowl and the 2022 Peach Bowl. The two games, he told Heyward, he wished he could have back. In 2019, Day felt multiple calls went against Ohio State, including a Clemson fumble in the third quarter that was overturned to keep a scoring drive alive. The Tigers ultimately scored a game-winning touchdown with 1:49 left in the fourth quarter when Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne Jr. connected on a 34-yard catch and run. If they won that game, it would have set up a national championship game against Joe Burrow and the LSU Tigers. In 2022, Day felt there was a no-call on a hit on Marvin Harrison Jr. on an end zone target that would have set up first-and-goal, and given the Buckeyes an opportunity to take a three-possession lead heading into the fourth quarter against Georgia. The Bulldogs ultimately beat TCU 65-7 in the national championship. “Those losses haunt you,” Day said. But they also taught him to adopt a strategy that helped Ohio State win the 2024 national title. “That’s where I got the mantra of, ‘Leave no doubt’ because, you know, it can’t come down to one call,” Day said. “That was the whole philosophy coming into the ‘24 season. ‘Don’t leave it to one call.’ Because if you leave it to one call, you deserve to lose.” Put simply, control the outcome to the best of your ability. Day also created a routine where, after each practice, a different Ohio State player takes a brick and places it on a platform to analogize the process of gradually building a foundation of togetherness, creating a culture. At no other program would fans still be distraught after winning the national title because of a regular-season loss in the rivalry game. But no other school is The Ohio State University. And that’s how Day felt after the 2024 season when the Buckeyes beat Notre Dame in the CFP national championship game, but had lost to Michigan earlier in the season. At no other program does a coach have to filter out players who aren’t future “first or second rounders.’ But, Day said, if he doesn’t do that,”they’re going to find a new coach.” “The bottom line is, you have to perform, you have to win every game,” Day said. The internal culture Day’s built over the years has helped him deal with that pressure.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

The slumping Milwaukee Brewers could be losing another of their top hitters for at least a little while. Christian Yelich was pulled for a pinch-hitter in the fifth inning against the Washington Nationals on Sunday with tightness in his left hamstring. The Brewers went on to fall 8-6 for their fifth straight loss. “We’re most likely going to get some bad news on Yelich,” manager Pat Murphy said after the game. Murphy said the 2018 NL MVP and three-time All-Star felt a “little twinge” in his hamstring and was undergoing imaging. “There is some fluid in there, so let’s wait and see,” Murphy said. “He wanted to stay in the game, but … we’ve just got to be careful with these guys. We’re in April.” Milwaukee is already missing Jackson Chourio and Andrew Vaughn due to hand injuries. Chourio went on the IL just before Milwaukee’s season opener, while Vaughn appeared in one game before joining him. The Brewers also are missing starting pitcher Quinn Priester (right thoracic outlet) and reliever Jared Koenig (elbow). After winning eight of their first 10 games, the Brewers have lost five straight. They never dropped as many as five in a row last year while winning a franchise-record 97 games to post the best record in the majors. The skid is their longest since June 2023. Milwaukee did get some good news Sunday. Murphy said pitchers Brandon Sproat and Kyle Harrison “both seem to be OK” after both had their knees examined following Saturday’s loss. “Harrison’s wrist is sore, because when he fell, he jammed his wrist, so we’re going to check that out,” Murphy said. “Sproat says he feels good.” Yelich, 34, is batting .314 with one homer and 10 RBIs in 15 games. He was the designated hitter Sunday and went 0 for 2, hitting grounders each time. His replacement, Gary Sanchez, hit a tying, three-run homer in the seventh. Reporting by The Associated Press.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports