Crediting 10 to 12 hours of sleep, 19-year-old Ty Gibbs wins Saturday at MIS

Don’t expect Ty Gibbs to be partying into the wee hours of the morning at Michigan International Speedway.

Gibbs won Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Michigan International Speedway, beating Justin Allgaier by 1.16 seconds. The 19-year-old has to report to work again tomorrow – as he’s filling in for Kurt Busch in the Cup Series, as Busch has been sidelined with concussion-like symptoms since July 24.

But the grandson of NFL Hall of Fame Coach Joe Gibbs likely wouldn’t be celebrating all night, even if he weren’t in Sunday’s race.

“Sleep is the biggest thing for me. Being able to get 10 to 12 hours of sleep every night is very key to success,” Gibbs said. “If you look at Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Tom Brady, all the guys are going to say that. And they’re a little older. For me, I’m growing still – hopefully.”

The 5-foot, 7-inch Gibbs earned his fifth Xfinity Series win of the year Saturday at MIS. The driver of the No. 54 car led 54 of the final 63 laps en route to victory.

Gibbs used to favor the 4 p.m. nap – which made it tough to sleep at night. After studying other athletes, he wanted to make a change.

“I just remember feeling exhausted and just tired during the day,” Gibbs said. “So I just (decided) I’m going to get the most sleep I possibly can, and it’s only going to help me.”

Gibbs had enough energy left Saturday for celebratory burnouts. He blew out the left rear tire in the process, and removed the steering wheel and dangled it out the window, at one point.

“I had the steering wheel out the window, I was trying to be like Kyle Larson,” Gibbs said. “I kind of look up to him.”

Gibbs also won the ARCA Series race at MIS last August.

Drivers had to deal with near-90-degree temperatures in Saturday’s race. Noah Gragson, who finished third, was visibly exhausted after the race. He said he threw up in his helmet after winning the second stage of the race in a photo finish.

“I was just holding my breath at the end of the second stage on AJ (Allmendinger), just trying to pass him,” Gibbs said. “I don’t know why I throw up, but I threw up inside the helmet again. I don’t know if my heart rate is high or what it is.”

Temperatures are expected to be in the high 80s again Sunday for the 200-lap, 400-mile race – nearly twice the length of Saturday’s race.

Gibbs starts 11th in the Cup race. His teammate, Bubba Wallace, qualified first.

Sunday’s FireKeepers Casino 400 starts at 3 p.m. Sunday and is televised on the USA Network.

Top 10 finishers

Here are the top 10 finishers from Saturday’s New Holland 250 Xfinity Series race.

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For an updated list of stories from MIS this NASCAR race weekend, click here.

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