Gibbs, 19, dominated the final stage of Saturday’s race at Michigan International Speedway which remained caution-free, but his No. 54 Toyota did pick up a sizeable piece of debris on his grille on Lap 88 of 125.
Gibbs pulled up behind the lapped car of Blaine Perkins and the air quickly dislodged the debris and returned his engine temperature to normal.
After successfully navigating a round of green-flag pit stops, Gibbs was not seriously threatened for the lead and won by 1.160 seconds over Justin Allgaier.
The win is the fifth of the year for Gibbs and ninth of his career in just 39 starts.
“We had a very fast (car). It’s awesome,” Gibbs said. “This style of racing also shows the strategy and pit stops as we got pretty spread out. My guys did a great job. My pit works so hard – I work out with them during the week. I see how hard they work.
“I just race week-in and week-out. People can get all excited and think they’re making a huge statement then they go to the playoffs and suck.”
Gibbs will make his third consecutive Cup Series start on Sunday filling in for Kurt Busch, who continues to recover from a concussion.
“I’m very thankful for the opportunity and I hope Kurt continues to get better,” Gibbs said. “If you think these cars are hard to drive, wait to you get to the Cup Series.”
Noah Gragson, who won the first two stages, ended up third, Brandon Jones was fourth and Austin Hill rounded out the top-five.
Completing the top-10 were Josh Berry, A.J. Allmendinger, Daniel Hemric, Riley Herbst and Landon Cassill.
Stage 3
Following the break between Stages 2 and 3, those cars that did not pit late in Stage 2 did so with Gragson first off pit road. Berry was penalized for speeding on pit road and had to restart from the rear of the field.
Gibbs was among those who stayed on the track and inherited the lead. He led the way on the restart on Lap 67 followed by Hill, Sammy Smith and Allgaier.
Sam Mayer was forced to pit under green on Lap 73 after getting damage on the left-front of his car from Smith.
With 50 laps remaining, Gibbs had built a 2.2-second lead over Allgaier as Hill ran third.
On Lap 88, Gibbs had a large piece of debris on his grille and he moved up behind the lapped car of Perkins which dislodged the debris.
Several cars hit pit road on Lap 100 to start a round of green-flag pit stops to allow teams to take on new tires and fuel to make it to the finish of the race.
Smith was penalized for speeding on pit road and had to serve a pass-through penalty.
Once the cycle of stops was complete on Lap 110, Gibbs cycled back to the lead. He was followed by Allgaier, Gragson and Jones.
With five laps to go, Gibbs maintained a 1.6-second lead over Allgaier as Gragson remained in the third.
Stage 2
Gragson passed Allmendinger off Turn 4 on the final lap to complete a sweep of the two stage wins.
Berry was third, Cassill fourth and Ryan Sieg ended up fifth.
Following the break between Stages 1 and 2, the lead-lap cars all pit with Gragson first off pit road.
On the restart on Lap 37, Gragson led the way, followed by Allmendinger, Smith and Allgaier.
Allmendinger got a push from Allgaier into the lead on the restart only to see Allgaier take the field three-wide and claim the lead on Lap 38.
On Lap 41, Matt Mills and C.J. McLaughlin both hit the wall in Turn 2 to bring out the caution.
Only a handful of cars pit and Allgaier remained in the lead when the race returned to green on Lap 46.
With 10 laps remaining in the stage, Allgaier held a small advantage over Smith as Gibbs ran third.
David Starr spun off Turn 2 after contact from Dillon Bassett to bring out the third caution of the race.
Several teams elected to pit with Gibbs the first off the pit road. Allmendinger was among those who stayed out and led the way on the restart on Lap 59. He was followed by Gragson and Cassill.
Stage 1
Gragson held off his teammate Allgaier and led all 30 laps on his way to the Stage 1 win.
Smith was third, Allmendinger fourth and Gibbs was fifth.
Gragson started on the pole and after five laps had moved out to a more than half-second lead over Allmendinger.
Berry made some contact with the wall on Lap 6 and lost some positions but remained on the track.
With 15 laps remaining in the first stage, Gragson maintained a 1.2-second lead over Allgaier as Allmendinger dropped to third.
With five laps to go, Allgaier had closed to Gragson’s rear bumper in an effort to attempt a pass for the lead.