Joe Gibbs hints at a Sprint Cup start for Erik Jones in near future
Young Erik Jones certainly turned heads during Friday night's NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Texas Motor Speedway, where he held off Sprint Cup veterans Brad Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr. to earn his first career victory in the series.
At just 18 years old, Jones is quickly showcasing his talents behind the wheel in both the XFINITY and Camping World Truck Series, where Jones won four times last year. That talent has not been lost on team owner Joe Gibbs.
"He's very talented, obviously," Gibbs said after Friday night's victory. "I had to call Kyle (Busch) and give him credit. I let Erik talk to him. We are really proud of him to be able to do what he's done. The big thing is, he beat some big people -- those are good cars up front in really quality stuff. We're proud of him and he should be proud of himself."
With Busch out of commission as he recovers from injuries sustained at Daytona International Raceway, could Jones be a candidate to drive the No. 18 Sprint Cup Series car at some point this year?
While Gibbs did not mention it directly, he did indicate a Sprint Cup start for the 18-year-old is in the near future.
"There's no question that at some point very quick he's going to be in a Cup car some," said Gibbs. "I think we have a bit of a strategy there that we talked about. I think he's ready to go at any time. We'll just work with that as we go forward."
Since Busch as injured in February, two-time defending Camping World Truck Series champion Matt Crafton drove the No. 18 Toyota in the Daytona 500, while David Ragan has been Busch's stand-in since the second race of the year at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
There has been no timetable set for Busch's return, although the driver and his wife, Samantha, continue to show his progress on their social media accounts.
VIDEO: Erik Jones captures his first XFINITY Series win
