HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin walked away from Homestead-Miami Speedway with top-five efforts, however nonetheless trying to find extra from their Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas.
Briscoe notched a fourth-place end Sunday to match his Daytona 500 end in his first prime 5 because the February race. Hamlin led 15 laps forward of ending fifth, however these had been the one ones JGR led within the 267-lap race.
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Briscoe is the latest driver on JGR’s roster, becoming a member of Hamlin, Christopher Bell and Ty Gibbs on the four-car group after 4 seasons at Stewart-Haas Racing. His Homestead end was a much-needed step in the proper course after a gap 5 races through which he says it has been powerful to discover a rhythm.
“I simply felt like we completed the place we deserved to complete from a pace standpoint,” Briscoe stated. “At this time may have went, truthfully, manner worse. We have now so much to wash up nonetheless. I’d say we nearly most likely misplaced 20 spots on pit street right this moment, so simply needed to hold battling from behind. However our automobile was actually, actually good — I say it was good, but it surely wasn’t nearly as good because the 5. Nevertheless it was nonetheless good.
“Simply lastly felt like we completed the place we would have liked to to hopefully construct some momentum. Hopefully, we are able to simply proceed to do that, proceed to indicate that we’re a kind of guys that may run up entrance week in and week out. It’s good to lastly do this. It’s been because the (Daytona) 500.”
JGR stands as a powerhouse throughout the NASCAR Cup Sequence storage, notably evidenced by Bell’s three wins throughout the first 4 races of 2025. Briscoe, who drove the No. 14 automobile at SHR final yr, believed he as a driver may carry out in JGR gear if given the chance. After a four-race stretch with finishes of 14th or worse, Briscoe and his No. 19 crew delivered what he believes ought to be the usual of a JGR driver.
“We all know that we’re succesful, proper?” Briscoe stated. “However I feel no less than for me, from a confidence standpoint, I felt like I ought to be operating within the prime 5 all day lengthy in Joe Gibbs Racing vehicles, however you by no means actually know till you do it, proper? So for me to have the ability to simply be up entrance all day lengthy … like previously, there was solely a pair weekends a yr the place I may do this and present that.
“So this yr, hopefully we are able to do it much more usually, and that’s undoubtedly a whole lot of enjoyable. It’s loopy, simply the distinction in automobile functionality. So wanting ahead to the remainder of the yr and simply persevering with to click on off races the place we’re up entrance all day lengthy and finally it’ll go our manner.”
Hamlin is the crew’s veteran driver, a full-time Cup racer because the fall of 2005. A fifth-place end may not do a lot to excite the 54-time winner lately, notably as he believes his No. 11 crew and the group as a complete at the moment sits behind its prime competitors. Bell has led 114 laps so far, fourth-most within the collection; Hamlin has led 24, Briscoe 9 and Ty Gibbs none.
“I nonetheless assume we’ve acquired work to do,” Hamlin stated. “I contend that we nonetheless don’t have the pace that it takes to steer a ton of laps, which is displaying in laps led. We’re not main laps like we’ve previously. All of JGR. So I feel we’ve simply acquired to get our vehicles just a little bit sooner to actually contend week in, week out, proper now.”
