A fight to the finish is an essential part of any NASCAR race. One afterward? Not so much.
But fists were flying Friday night at Martinsville Speedway’s pit row when Ty Gibbs and Sam Mayer came to blows after an Xfinity race won by Gibbs’s teammate, Brandon Jones, according to ESPN.
Video of the fracas showed that after the drivers got out of their vehicles, Gibbs approached Mayer with a stride that showed trouble was brewing.
With the aid of a jabbing finger, Gibbs delivered his message and turned away, still wearing his helmet.
Mayer, who had taken off his helmet, followed. Things escalated from pointing to poking amid a flow of words until finally, when Mayer pushed a little more than Gibbs was willing to tolerate, Gibbs took a swing.
WARNING: The following video contains violence that some viewers may find disturbing.
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Ty Gibbs punching Sam Mayer in the face repeatedly with a helmet on is the move of a coward. Hate it or not.
I would not be angry if NASCAR decides to issue Gibbs a penalty or suspension. Immature, ridiculous behavior.
— Austin Konenski (@AustinKonenski) April 9, 2022
“I tried to talk to him, and he got all in my face, and at that point, we’ve got to start fighting,” Gibbs said. “We got put in a bad position there. The only thing I’m mad about is [Mayer] didn’t have anything. He wasn’t going to get past [third-place finisher A.J. Allmendinger], and I just got hit in the left rear.”
The fight proved the adage that it is hard to cause much damage to a man wearing a helmet, with Gibbs suffering as little damage in the fight as he did on the track, where 16 yellow flags flew on the Virginia track.
The drivers afterward noted that the hard feelings were part of a world where men will be boys.
“What led up to that moment was, I talked to Sam, I was frustrated,” Gibbs said, according to NASCAR.com.
“I was like, ‘What are you doing when we got drove into the fence?’ And you know, we kind of shoved a little bit, and I turned away. And when I got grabbed and kind of pulled, that just led up to that moment. I think just build-up, build-up, build-up, and I snapped, and that’s just part of it. You know, hopefully, I’ll learn from it,” he said.
Mayer emerged with some scrapes on his face after the fight.
“Heat of the moment type stuff,” Mayer said. “I mean, I think it’s more I was just trying to get his attention, and he took it the wrong way, and it just … he just snapped. I mean, that’s what I say just happened. Nothing anything horrible, but it’s just part of the sport.”
WARNING: The following video contains violence that some viewers may find disturbing.
There’s a FIGHT between Ty Gibbs and Sam Mayer!
(Via @NASCAR_Xfinity) pic.twitter.com/7kCCLbS7Il
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) April 9, 2022
Gibbs also said the tussle was just part of the sport.
“It’s just part of it, you know. At least they’re making noise, so that’s a good thing,” Gibbs said, referring to the booing some fans gave him.
Later, he said, “I got to talk to Sam. So no, we’re all good. We’re on the same page. It’s just, boys are playing hard out there, and it led up to that moment.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
