martin truex jr Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor A staple of the NASCAR Cup Series schedule since 1950, Darlington Raceway has served as a lifeline to help the sport get back on its feet in the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Just three days after the 2020 season restarted with the running of the Real Heroes 400 at the 1.366-mile egg-shaped oval, the stars of NASCAR’s top division head back to South Carolina for another dance with the Lady in Black in Wednesday night’s Toyota 500. With no practice or qualifying heading intoRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer If there was a driver that improved throughout Sunday’s The Real Heroes 400 at Darlington Raceway, it would be Martin Truex, Jr. as he brought home a season-high sixth in the sport’s return to competition. At the start of the race, it appeared for a period of time that it would’ve been another rough outing for the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion as he punched a hole on the right front of his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats & ATVs Toyota Camry. It was believedRead More

By Holly Cain, NASCAR Wire Service In a much-applauded highly-anticipated schedule move the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series – featuring many of the sport’s top competitors – will conclude its inaugural run with the North Wilkesboro 160 at the virtual North Wilkesboro Speedway on Saturday, May 9 at 3 p.m. ET on FOX (where available and subject to change), FS1 and the FOX Sports app. Jeff Gordon, who won the last NASCAR Cup Series race at the historic former stop on the series schedule (Sept. 29, 1996), will again stepRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer It was far from a pretty race for Denny Hamlin, who managed to escape Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway with a less than satisfying sixth-place finish. The three-time Daytona 500 champion had two infamous moments happened in the 200-lap race where outside of race winner Alex Bowman, he was the focal point of the event. Earlier in the race, a three-car battle between Hamlin, Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick nearly went awry on the frontstretch when the trio drafted together. Harvick slightly bumpedRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service FONTANA, Calif. – It’s far too early to be thinking about Christmas, but Clint Bowyer was the Grinch whole stole the thunder from local favorite Jimmie Johnson during Saturday’s time trials at Auto Club Speedway. With a stronger run off Turn 4 on his qualifying lap, Bowyer edged Johnson by .007 seconds to earn the pole position for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 (3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The last driver to turn a lap, Johnson had the edge atRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor After an emotional rollercoaster of a ride to kick off the 2020 season in Daytona last weekend, the driver and teams in the NASCAR Cup Series will look to buckle down as they head into the West Coast swing and Sunday’s running of the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. As the first intermediate track of the season, the 1.5-mile track just north of Sin City will give us the first signs of which teams to look out for as the season progresses, especially withRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Entering his 16th Daytona 500, Martin Truex, Jr. will be strapping in the No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry for the first time without long time crew chief Cole Pearn. Ushering a new era will be James Small, who will be on top of the No. 19 pit box for the first time. However, there isn’t much of a void since Pearn ended his NASCAR career during the off-season. In fact, it’s business as usual for Truex who’ll look to haveRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season for the full-time drivers in the series leading into February’s running of the Daytona 500. Age: 39 Years in Cup: 15 Career Wins: 26 Biggest Accomplishment: 2017 Cup Series champion, Two-time Xfinity Series champion (2004, 2005) Nearly equaling his win total from his 2017 NASCAR Cup Series championship season, Martin Truex, Jr. and crew chief Cole Pearn were a force to be reckoned with last season, racking up seven wins in their first season in-house atRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Just 10 days removed from championship-winning crew chief Cole Pearn exiting both Joe Gibbs Racing and NASCAR, the team announced Thursday that Australian James Small will be calling the shots for Martin Truex, Jr.’s No. 19 team. The 36-year-old has been Truex’s lead engineer the past two seasons at both JGR and the now-defunct Furniture Row Racing. Their collaboration proved to be a massive success this past season as Truex won seven races and finished runner-up in the NASCAR Cup Series standings. Small said it’s anRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor When the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season begins, the No. 19 team at Joe Gibbs Racing will have a new leader atop the pit box after crew chief Cole Pearn announced Monday he will be stepping down and leaving NASCAR to pursue opportunities outside the sport. In the team release detailing Pearn’s departure, he cited a familiar theme of wanting to spend more time with his family away from the grueling NASCAR schedule as one of the main reasons for his decision. “This was anRead More