More than a famous name, Gibbs gives 100% in winning ARCA race at Kansas Speedway

Ty Gibbs ran the perfect race on Saturday at Kansas Speedway.

Gibbs, grandson of Hall of Fame football coach and NASCAR team owner Joe Gibbs, turned in a dominating performance by leading all 100 laps and winning the ARCA Series Dutch Boy 150 from the pole.

He became the first driver to lead every lap of an ARCA race since Kevin Swindell won at Chicago in 2012.

Gibbs, 18, won his second race of the season in the No. 18 Toyota and 10th of his three-year career. And that doesn’t include his NASCAR Xfinity Series win on the Daytona road course in February.

Gibbs has come close to leading from green flag to the checkered flag before, having led 124 of 150 laps in his win at Phoenix earlier this season and a whopping 199 of 200 laps at Winchester, Ind., but this was his perfect ride.

“We had a really good car … people don’t understand how much these guys (on the team) work at their job and how bad they want to win,” said Gibbs. “That’s what makes a difference from the different teams. My team and Joe Gibbs Racing in general, we want to win, we’re a family, we love what we do. We don’t come here to make money, we come here to win, and because we love it. “

Venturini Motorsports teammates Drew Dollar and Corey Heim finished second and third in Toyotas, but no one really had a realistic shot at Gibbs, whose margin of victory was a comfortable 5.138 seconds.

“We were second-best all day,” lamented Dollar. “There were times where I thought we were catching the 18 or had a shot at him, but his car was fast.”

Gibbs, whose Super Bowl-winning grandfather was atop the pit box on NFL Draft weekend, clearly has designs on future Xfinity and eventual Cup races, and he used Saturday’s race to learn a little more about Kansas Speedway, where he finished 14th last fall in his track debut.

“It was a fun time going out there and learning the track, too, and getting a handful of experience for the future,” said Gibbs, who dedicated the victory Formula One driver Ayrton Senna, who died in a crash 27 years ago Saturday. “This was one of our best races for sure. We made a statement, even though I don’t think we have to, that we’ll be here. I come to race. I’m not coming to brag, I’m not coming to be cocky or humble. I’m just coming here to race.”

The race hadn’t completed half a lap before reigning series champion Bret Holmes, caught in the middle of a three-wide run in turn two, got loose, spun around and was slammed in the door by oncoming Scott Melton.

The wreck caused a red flag delay of 9 minutes, 52 seconds and ended the day for both Melton and Holmes, who won last summer’s ARCA race at Kansas Speedway and was second en route to clinching the championship.

“Any time you spin and you see oncoming traffic … it was scary for a second, but I’m okay,” said Holmes, after he and Melton were released from the infield care center. “We put so much into this; we’re really invested in this … and to know we had a shot to win the race, we’re a top 2 o3 car here, but wrecks happen. I guess. It’s just tough to swallow “