Martin Truex Jr. claims Martinsville Cup race might not be ‘more aggressive than normal’
Martin Truex Jr. is going to Martinsville in a must-win situation to make it to the Championship-4.
Follow Us
Martin Truex Jr. (Via IMAGO)
Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. doesn’t think the Cup Series playoff Round of 8 elimination race at Martinsville won’t be a more aggressive event than usual. Six drivers are fighting for the final two spots in the Championship Four, and Truex Jr. is among them who desperately need a win to progress.
Ahead of the second Martinsville race of the season, the No:19 JGR driver was asked if he thinks the race will be more aggressive than normal due to the high stakes. The Toyota Camry driver confirmed that he doesn’t see it happening, as the Next-Gen car has limited the aggressiveness to just beating and banging.
I doubt it. I think it’s going to be as aggressive as it’s been with this car. You can only beat and bang with this car so much, and then you can’t get to someone’s bumper to get them out of the way. Just the way it is.
Martin Truex Jr. said, as reported by Speedway Media.
The coming week will mark the 36th start of the 2017 Cup champion at the track where he has won thrice with JGR. Before coming to JGR, though, it was one of his worst tracks. He has 16 top-10 finishes at the track, and just three came in a Chevy team where he raced most of his Cup career.
Martin Truex Jr. explains the major challenge he hopes to face at Martinsville
When asked about the potential challenges he expected to face at the track, he pointed out that beating and banging is obviously the big one. He also highlighted the fact that the race leaders often get moved of the way by the rivals for the win, and it’s another major issue.
The biggest thing is just the beating and banging that happens there and getting knocked out of the way, which there seems to be a bit less of that so far with this car. For me, I’ve really only had one issue there, which was getting taken out of the race at the end in 2018. It gets like that at Martinsville, it’s just a tough track.
He was alluding to the Joey Logano crash from 2018 with the bumping reference. Logano booked a spot in the finale by bumping Truex Jr. off his way and also went on to win the title that season. The incident gave fans one of Truex Jr.’s most viral one-liners:
He may have won the battle, but he ain't winning the damn war.
In case you missed it:
- Bob Pockrass says Aric Almirola might retire in 2023, names Noah Gragson as the favorite replacement
Stay Updated!
Justin P Joy
(4923 Articles Published)