Since shocking death of Coy Gibbs in Phoenix, just hours after his son Ty won the 2022 Xfinity Series championshipthe NASCAR community wrapped its collective arms around Joe Gibbs Racing with the love and support of other teams, drivers and fans.
Interestingly, in recent weeks the organization has drawn attention to something very different. First of all, it was a video shared on social media last week about Christopher Bell’s team which required a warning due to its graphic nature. And then, this week, the team released another video, which touched on a controversial topic and sent NASCAR fans into a frenzy.
Joe Gibbs Racing shares graphic video
Christopher Bell saw his chances of winning his first Cup Series championship vanish during the final pit stop at Phoenix, which lasted just under 20 seconds. What Bell and the team didn’t know at the time was that the stoppage almost cost Jackman Caleb Dirks something much more painful: his finger.
Last week, the organization shared footage from the Jackman’s helmet camera, which included a warning at the beginning due to the graphic nature of the content. The nearly 40-second video first shows Dirks running around the front of the car, lifting up the driver’s side before grabbing the steering wheel and placing it on the left rear side.
It’s a confusing moment as the tire changer backs the wheel with the gun in hand, thinking the tire change is complete, but Dirks’ finger gets stuck under the wheel. The tire iron hits the wheel again to loosen the finger, but it doesn’t work. A third time with the gun and the finger comes free. Dirks immediately turns around and falls to the ground before realizing he hasn’t lowered the jack. He turns around, lowers the jack and Bell walks away.
The team then included a portion of the video that shows what happens to a hot dog subjected to the same scenario. The dog loses, and it’s ugly. The video ends by showing a photo of Dirks’ injuries, including bruises and cuts to his middle and index fingers.
“It’s a miracle that Caleb didn’t suffer serious injuries (unlike the hot dog in our illustration),” the tweet said.
New week, new interesting video from Joe Gibbs Racing
This week, the organization, which is very active on social media, posted a video showing a Toyota Camry on the JGR campus stopping abruptly several times, simulating a pit stop. It then included images of the car’s interior with cables and numerous batteries. A LOT. It seems harmless enough. That was until JGR described what people were seeing.
“It’s electric,” the tweet said. “A look at the electric car that our pit crews will be practicing pit stops with here at the shop. #NASCAR #electric #racing”
The responses were numerous and the most negative were the strongest.
“It’s time to stop watching NASCAR when this happens. Terrible idea,” one fan wrote.
“If @nascar goes electric, I’m done!!!!”, wrote another.
Others pointed out that JGR was not showing off its latest electric car intended for use in a future Cup Series event, but simply a car designed solely for the purpose of practicing pit stops with practical reasons for the TO DO.
“Do you read at least one article?” Or I’m just here for the photos. This is for pit stop practice. This is actually sweet, even awesome,” one fan wrote. “They probably burn 20 to 30 gallons of racing fuel per session. Racing gas costs over $10/gal. Add that up over the course of the year. And you can practice indoors.
NASCAR has already admitted it will go electric at some point in the future
While JGR may use the electric car to practice pit stops for all the reasons posted on social media, including fuel economy, it is also understood that the organization is looking to the future. And it’s a future that NASCAR has acknowledged will include electric. President Steve Phelps said it last year on I am an athlete podcast.
“Sound is a very important part of our sport,” Phelps admitted. “There’s a tradition, a history that comes with what they call an ICE engine – an internal combustion engine. I think what we’ll do in the meantime, in three or four years, probably three, is have an internal combustion engine that has a hybrid element, an electrification element. But it will still look like one of our cars.
“We can try to do an exhibition-type deal, but you don’t have competitive pit stops. We need to make sure we own a space that someone else could occupy, and that’s what bargains are all about.
In July of this year, Kickin’ The Tires.net obtained leaked documents which revealed that NASCAR planned to debut an electric vehicle prototype at a 2023 Clash event, and the plan included exhibition races in the third quarter at six venues aligned with Cup Series races, with each event being a 30 minute race, one on Saturday and one on Sunday. If things go as planned, the hope is a potential first-year competition starting in 2025.
There has been no recent news on whether the electric car prototype will be in Los Angeles. Ultimately, even if some fans don’t like the idea, electric is going to happen. NASCAR is directly linked to manufacturers, who produce more electric vehicles each year. This is the growing trend in the automotive market, and NASCAR will do its best to accommodate it.
