Joe Gibbs is one of the few people that’s ever achieved a high level of success in multiple sports. He’s a three-time Super Bowl-winning coach with Washington and a five-time NASCAR Cup Series championship-winning owner with the race team that bears his name. He’s also won four Xfinity Series titles.
At the December 3 Washington Commanders game against the Miami Dolphins, the 83-year-old mixed his passions when he stood on the sidelines and watched the game with driver Christopher Bell and a surprise guest, the recently retired Aric Almirola.
During a conversation with NFL team owner Josh Harris, who is also invested in JGR, Gibbs made a surprising reveal when he introduced the former Stewart-Haas Racing driver.
Gibbs at the game. Maybe he can call the defense
“Aric’s driving for us now,” the NFL and NASCAR Hall of Famer said, which was unexpected because nothing has been officially announced about the partnership.
Fox’s Bob Pockrass shed some light on when an official announcement might come.
“JGR hopes to announce its full Xfinity lineup/plans in a week or so but expect Aric Almirola to be part of those plans as he shows up with Joe Gibbs at the Commanders game today and Gibbs tells Josh Harris that Almirola is driving for JGR now,” the reporter posted on X.
Aric Almirola Retired but Still Interested in Racing
After months of speculation in 2023, Aric Almirola officially ended his NASCAR Cup Series career at the November 5 Phoenix race after 12 seasons, including the last six at SHR.
While the 39-year-old wrapped up racing full-time in Cup, which included three wins and 96 top-10 results, he was open to what the future might hold and expressed interest in again competing with the Xfinity Series.
Based on what Gibbs had to say at the football game, Almirola will get that chance in 2024, more than likely driving the No. 19 All-Star car with Ryan Truex and other drivers.
And fans shouldn’t be surprised to see Almirola putting that top-performing car in Victory Lane. In 2023, he failed to win any Cup Series races with SHR. However, in one of the two Xfinity events he competed, he won the June 10 Sonoma race with RSS Racing, impressively holding off Kyle Larson to claim victory.
Started Career at Gibbs, Including Bizarre First NASCAR Win
What’s interesting about Gibbs announcing Almirola will be racing for JGR in 2024 is that it’s a full-circle moment for the driver. He started his then-Busch Series career with the organization in 2006 on a part-time basis. In 2007, he is credited with earning his first NASCAR win at Milwaukee, but it came in bizarre fashion.
Almirola started the race, but JGR officials ordered Denny Hamlin to sub in for him mid-race, in order to please the main sponsor, which was based in the area. Hamlin went on to win and stood in Victory Lane but Almirola was credited with the win.
Earlier that same year, Almirola made his Cup Series debut with the team, finishing 41st in his one and only race at Las Vegas.
Returning to JGR in 2024 could prove to be the perfect recipe for the driver who didn’t want to race full-time anymore and wanted to spend more time with his family. He’ll now be able to do just that, running selective races and doing so in what should be a very competitive ride.
However, this time around the veteran driver won’t allow substitutes.
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Joe Gibbs Caught Revealing New Driver on Washington Sideline