Joe Gibbs Racing doubled-down on its 2025 NASCAR Cup Series championship opportunities over the weekend – now filling half the four-driver title field – first with a 60-win veteran still racing for his first series title and now the team’s newest driver addition set to compete for his first career chance at one.

Chase Briscoe pulled off a dramatic typically-Talladega last lap pass in overtime Sunday to claim the second of the four title-eligible positions in NASCAR’s season-ending championship race – marking the first time in the 29-year old’s career he will race for the big trophy. And he’s got some familiar company in the quest already with his teammate 44-year-old Denny Hamlin taking the first spot in the title four with a win two weeks ago in Las Vegas.

And. … the odds look encouraging even beyond that for the Gibbs Toyota team. It’s well on its way to a major title flip-of-the-script from recent years when its chief competitors Hendrick Motorsports’ Chevrolet squad or the three-time defending champion Team Penske’s Ford group dominated the team numbers in the title finale.

It’s very possible the mighty JGR team could fill three of the four NASCAR Cup Series championship-eligible positions. Gibbs driver Christopher Bell leads the points standings with a healthy 37-point edge on the cutoff line with only Sunday’s Xfinity 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway (2 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) left to formalize which four trophy contenders will race for the title.

Bell finished eighth Sunday at Talladega, joining Briscoe as the only Playoff drivers in the race’s top-10.

The highest-ranked driver in the points standings will advance to the championship race and should a non-title contender win at Martinsville, then the two highest drivers will race for the big trophy.

Currently Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson is ranked fourth, a single point behind Bell. Regular Season Champion William Byron is ranked fifth (-38 points), followed by Penske teammates Joey Logano (-38) and Ryan Blaney (-47) and Hendrick’s Chase Elliott (-62).

“For our organization, today was just a huge day,” team owner Joe Gibbs allowed, with a big smile Sunday. “I appreciated the fact that Christopher [Bell] was able to get everything done that he needed to get done there. Ty [Gibbs] helping Chase [Briscoe] was a big deal. Toyota, our partner, you just can’t say enough about them and what we’ve done together. Just really appreciate it. It’s a total team effort. As you know, in this sport it takes a lot.”

It does. And JGR’s effort Sunday shows it’s ready to raise its game.

Hamlin leads all drivers this year with six wins. Briscoe leads the series with seven pole positions. And Bell a four-race winner this season – including the Spring race at the Phoenix title venue – leads the team in recent championship eligibility with two appearances in the Championship Four in the last three years.

Those three JGR drivers alone, account for 13 victories in the 34 races this year – almost double the total of Hendrick’s (seven) and nearly triple the total of Team Penske’s (five) trophy-haul.

“I think if three JGR cars get in it, it’s how do we execute and not screw it up,” Briscoe said Sunday. “If we have a 75% chance even going there and winning it, one of us needs to win it. We won there earlier in the year as a company.

“That would be the biggest thing, how do we put it all together and put a bow on what a good season that we’ve had.

As for Briscoe, the idea of having three teammates among the four title contenders is more reassuring that daunting. He says it doesn’t change the way he races at all and only raises the expectations.

“I don’t think it’s really a mind shift,” Briscoe said. “Truthfully more often than not, I know to beat them for a win, I’m probably going to be going up against my teammates. So that doesn’t really change. If I can’t win, yeah, I hope that one of them win. I even told [his wife] Marissa that the other day.

“I’d love to win the championship, but if I can’t win, I hope it is one of my teammates. I genuinely want that for them. Whether it’s Denny and everything that he’s gone through and going through right now, or Christopher. Me and him have been friends since we were 11, 12 years old. I know how much he wants it, too.

“Yeah, selfishly I want to win it. If not, I genuinely hope one of my teammates does win it.”

TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!