Larry McReynolds Has Harsh Words for Ty Gibbs After ‘Retaliation’ Incident

FOX Sports analyst Larry McReynolds has just delivered a very strong message. He said that Ty Gibbs needs to “go back to Xfinity” until he learns to carry himself in the Cup Series.

McReynolds made his point clear on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio’s “On Track” on September 27. He reacted to Gibbs intentionally slamming into the side of Ty Dillon’s No. 42 on pit road and specifically said that this incident was more serious than William Byron spinning Denny Hamlin under caution because of the innocent bystanders.

“I know we don’t live in a what-if world, but when he made that move on Ty Dillon, there were Roush Fenway Keselowski team members on the right side of that car,” McReynolds said. “There were two NASCAR officials standing there. And if I hear one more person, one more announcer, one more human being say, ‘He’s just 19.’

“Ok, then don’t race Cup. Go back and run Xfinity or go back and run Late Models until you learn how to carry yourself. I’m not buying that one. You’re in the Cup Series. I don’t care if you’re nine, 19, or 49. You need to know when to and when not to.”

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The Incident Did Not Receive Coverage

While this contact took place on pit road, it did not receive coverage during the USA Network broadcast. There was one angle looking down pit road that caught it in the background while reporter Parker Kligerman talked about Kyle Larson’s stop.

The one angle that made the rounds on Twitter courtesy of user @b1gnate_11 showed Dillon pulling out of his pit stall and making contact with Gibbs’ No. 23 Toyota Camry while going three-wide.

Gibbs responded to the contact by moving Dillon to the left and then intentionally steering into the side of the No. 42. This hit sent the Petty GMS car toward the officials and the RFK Racing pit crew. Dillon was able to correct his stock car and avoid a disastrous situation, but there was tire smoke as he tried to avoid clipping an official from behind.

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Questions Remain About Gibbs’ Future

The incident at Texas Motor Speedway happened amid conversations about Gibbs’ future. There are still questions about whether he will move up to the Cup Series after only one full-time Xfinity Series campaign.

The belief during the 2022 season has been that Gibbs will indeed head to the Cup Series and take over the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry while Kyle Busch goes to Richard Childress Racing. Dale Earnhardt Jr. made comments during the race weekend at Texas Motor Speedway about Gibbs moving to the Cup Series in 2023.

However, Joe Gibbs Racing has not provided a concrete answer. The team has remained quiet about Gibbs, and it has not made any announcements about his future. There were quotes early in the 2022 season about Gibbs remaining in the Xfinity Series for a second full-time season, but these were before the contract talks with Busch broke down.

Will Gibbs move to the Cup Series as expected? JGR has yet to provide this answer.  However, McReynolds believes that the young driver still has some growing up to do before he makes this career change.

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