Five-time NASCAR Cup Series champion owner Joe Gibbs has broken his silence when it comes to Joe Gibbs Racing drivers participating in dirt track racing events. 

Gibbs addressed the topic during Tuesday's press conference to announce that Chase Briscoe will be driving the JGR No. 19 beginning in 2025. 

"What we've developed here, if someone wants to run a race outside of our Cup stuff and everything, they just come to us," Gibbs began. "They go to the crew chief first and then they go to our competition guy Michael and then we all talk it over. It has a lot to do with the car and the race track and we'll make a decision to go forward. There will be times, but definitely, we'll use common sense. That's the way we've developed a little plan moving forward because I know it's important to them."

2025 Driver Announcement https://t.co/eflEorpAIx

— Joe Gibbs Racing (@JoeGibbsRacing) June 25, 2024

Christopher Bell, the driver of the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, carved his path to NASCAR's top level by becoming one of the best dirt track drivers in the country. However, since the 2022 racing season Bell's participation in dirt races has decreased significantly. Since making a Micro Sprint start on July 22, 2022, Bell hadn't competed in a dirt track race until he made Micro Sprint starts at Millbridge Speedway on May 25 and May 29 of this year. 

Bell told David Gravel on his YouTube channel in January 2023 that he was prohibited from dirt racing for the time being, with a direct request from Gibbs.

"Joe is very vocal about me not dirt track racing, for the time being. And he doesn't love it at all," Bell said to Gravel. "I had a great relationship with Coy Gibbs (Joe's son) and my dirt track racing was funneled through there." 

Tragically the team lost Coy Gibbs in November of 2022, and the organization has seen immense changes since his passing. Coy's son Ty Gibbs is now in a NASCAR Cup Series car after two-time champion Kyle Busch left for Richard Childress Racing in 2023. Earlier this month, Truex Jr. told the media he was vacating the No. 19 car, leaving the door open for Briscoe to arrive at Joe Gibbs Racing. 

Famously, Gibbs has hired a few of the sports greatest talents. In fact, noted dirt racer Tony Stewart won two NASCAR Cup Series championships for "Coach" driving for him from 1999 through 2008.

Briscoe, an Indiana Sprint Car product who currently drives the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 14, will take over driving duties of the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 currently driven by Truex Jr. The news was officially announced just a few days after Bell slipped up and revealed Briscoe as the new driver of the JGR No. 19 during a press conference Friday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. 

As a fitting touch, the team brought out Bell to introduce Briscoe as the team's next driver. 

"Since I had the mistake of starting this on Friday, I guess I get to finish today," Bell began. "It is my honor to officially announce the full name of our new driver next year, Chase Briscoe."

Briscoe has increased his involvement in Sprint Car racing this season, bringing back the Chase Briscoe Racing team with rising star Karter Sarff behind the wheel. Briscoe has also competed in a handful of races himself, most recently during the Dirt Duels at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

“I've been having way more fun on the owner side rather than the driver side." Briscoe told FloRacing this past weekend in New Hampshire. "I’ve only run seven or eight races this year. My dad has been running the program day to day, Karter Sarff has done a really good job, I hope to continue to build that program."

Time will tell how often we will see Bell and Briscoe competing in dirt track races in the future, but for now it at least appears as though there will be some limitations as to when and where they can race outside of the NASCAR Cup Series.