Chase Briscoe wasn’t supposed to be here. Not in this car, not in this position. But when Martin Truex Jr. stepped away from full-time racing in 2024, Joe Gibbs Racing needed someone to pilot the No. 19. Enter Briscoe, who moved to JGR after Stewart-Hass Racing shut operations in 2024. Briscoe is a driver with plenty of talent but faces an uphill battle to prove he belongs at one of NASCAR’s top teams.
Homestead-Miami was a test. Could he step in and deliver in the #19 as Truex Jr. so often did? Well, a top-five place finish is solid on paper, but the road to get there was anything but smooth. Issues, from technical to human errors, turned his race into a constant battle for survival. So, did he pass the test? Well, that depends on how you look at it.
Chase Briscoe’s rollercoaster race at Homestead-Miami
Chase Briscoe’s fourth-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway was a testament to his resilience and determination. Throughout the race, Briscoe faced a series of challenges that tested both his skill and composure. He described the experience as being “up and down all day long.” Despite these setbacks, he managed to navigate through the field, showcasing his ability to adapt and persevere under pressure.
One of the significant hurdles Briscoe encountered was related to his pit crew. Just a week prior, during the Pennzoil 400 in Las Vegas, members of his pit crew were suspended after a loose wheel went onto the track. NASCAR issued two race suspensions to crew members Caleb Dirks (jack) and Daniel Smith (rear tire changer). This disruption undoubtedly added to the challenges the #19 faced during the Homestead-Miami race.
Chase Briscoe still managed to put in a solid qualifying effort, entering the race in fourth place. His finish? Right back where he started. “Start fourth finishing fourth [but] that’s not the whole story. We were kinda up and down all day long with pitstops and brake issues, tire vibrations.” Briscoe said after the race. His fourth-place finish was truly against all odds and was a much-needed positive after a string of four finishes outside the top 10 following the Daytona 500. “Honestly, this is what we needed as a race team. To come out with a top-5, we can finally kinda build on this,” Briscoe added.
Despite inconsistent finishes, Briscoe feels the team has been good all along, and finally got to show it today. “We have good speed all year. We just haven’t been able to show that.” The #19 clinched the pole at the Daytona 500, the first-ever for a Toyota, and ended up with a 4th-place finish there. However, since then, speed has come with a slew of issues, be it on pit road or the track.
Homestead was proof that Chase Briscoe has certainly still got it. He moved up to third by the 22nd lap and then maintained his position throughout the race, eventually sliding back down but overtaking Hamlin for fourth place on Lap 221. “It’s fun to kinda be up in the front all day long and show what I feel like I’m capable of,” Briscoe added, reflecting on his consistent run. This is the JGR driver’s first top-5 finish at Homestead for his career.
Looking ahead, Chase Briscoe is enthusiastic about the upcoming races. He mentioned, “There are really a lot of good race tracks I feel for us as a team and even myself.” As we move along, the next race is at Martinsville, a track where Briscoe has 5 top-10 finishes in the last six races. After Martinsville we head to Darlington, where Briscoe famously won last year during the final regular season race.
Adjusting to the pressure of filling Martin Truex Jr.’s seat
Martin Truex Jr. built a Hall of Fame-worthy career with consistency, resilience, and an ability to deliver when it mattered most. The 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion was a force at Joe Gibbs Racing, racking up wins and playoff runs year after year. In his first year at JGR in 2019, MTJ was on fire, posting 7 wins and winning the regular season championship, eventually finishing 2nd in the drivers standings to teammate Kyle Buch. He went on to make another Championship 4 appearance in 2021, this time finishing behind Kyle Larson. MTJ’s final masterpiece was the regular season title in 2023 and, after a winless 2024, he decided to hang up his firesuit. His departure from full-time racing left a massive void, and JGR put their faith in Chase Briscoe to fill it.
Chase Briscoe’s 2025 campaign started with promise. A record-breaking pole in the qualifying coupled with a strong fourth-place finish at Daytona turned heads, signaling that he could quickly adapt to his new surroundings. But as the season progressed, the results didn’t match expectations. The No. 19 team struggled to find consistency.
At Atlanta, Chase Briscoe finished 21st. He followed it up with a 14th-place finish at COTA. Then, at Phoenix, he was at the epicenter of a massive crash that eliminated him and six other cars while damaging others. He DNF’d and was placed 35th. Finally, last week, he managed a decent 17th-place finish after losing a tire on the track and going 2-laps down.
At Homestead, Chase Briscoe got to prove his mettle. While a single top-five doesn’t erase the struggles of the season, it does offer hope. Briscoe has shown flashes of brilliance but now needs Truex-like consistency to prove he belongs in the No. 19 long-term. His performance at Homestead was a step in the right direction, but with JGR’s high standards, the real question remains. Can Chase Briscoe keep this momentum going, or will inconsistency continue to haunt his 2025 campaign? What do you think? Let us know in the comments!
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