martin truex jr Tag

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – In a wild war of attrition that went to two overtimes, Erik Jones outdueled Martin Truex Jr. on Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway to seize the first victory of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career. In a Coke Zero Sugar 400 that went eight laps beyond its scheduled 160, Jones passed the reigning series champion on the backstretch of the final lap and held on to win by .125 seconds. Jones battled back from damage sustained in a multicarRead More

By Seth Eggert, Staff Writer The Overton’s 400 was almost a case of going from worst to first for Martin Truex, Jr. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver had plenty of speed, but not enough to contend for the victory. After the final restart, Truex battled with Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, and eventual race winner Kyle Busch. He pushed Logano into the lead with his No. 78 5-hour Energy / Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry. Truex hovered just outside the top-five for theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service JOLIET, Ill. – Like two boxers in the final round of a closely-contested slugfest, Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson traded hard shots on the last lap of Sunday’s Overton’s 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Moments later, it was Kyle Busch who was still standing—with his car parked on the finish line and his fifth Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory of the season in his pocket. In the closing three laps, Larson gained on Busch, who had led from a restart on Lap 213 of 267.Read More

By Brian Eberly, Contributing Writer JOLIET, Ill. — The stars and cars of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will take to the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday to do battle in the Overtons’ 400. The intermediate tracks that dominate the schedule sometimes seem one and the same, but the track 50 miles outside of Chicago has begun to take on a character all of its own as the racing surface ages and bumps develop aided by the harsh Midwest winters. The 2017 MENCS Champion and defending Chicagoland race-winner Martin TruexRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After spending the past seven years as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoff opener, Chicagoland returns to its mid-summer roots this weekend as they get set to host Sunday’s Overton’s 400. The track, which joined the circuit in 2001, only hosts the Cup Series once each season, boasting banking of 18 degrees as well as a curved back straightaway that allows drivers to carry their momentum around the entirety of the track. Having not been repaved in its 18-year history, the track also allows forRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer SONOMA, California — For the second time in his career, Martin Truex, Jr. scored a win at Sonoma Raceway, ending the streak of nine different winners in nine years. After being heartbroken last year, Truex spoke about his two wins during the press conference, saying how he still recalls winning in 2013 for at the time, Michael Waltrip Racing, and treats each win as if it’ll be his last. “I remember that win like it was yesterday. It was huge,” said Truex. “I really feelRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer SONOMA, California — Banking on a late race caution to score his second straight win at Sonoma Raceway, Kevin Harvick didn’t get one and finished second in Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350, leading 35 of 110 laps. “We all make mistakes, and we all do things for a split second that you might be right after it all happens,” said Harvick. “These guys do a great job. Everyone on our Mobil 1 team has done a great job the last five years now.” Harvick said ratherRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service SONOMA, Calif. – Using a contrarian strategy that included bluffing Kevin Harvick onto pit road earlier than planned in the final stage of Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350, Martin Truex Jr. pulled off a convincing victory in the 16th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race of the season. On Lap 73, during the final stage of the race, Truex’s crew chief, Cole Pearn, ordered the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota to pit road. On the spur of the moment, Harvick’s crew chief, Rodney Childers, optedRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer SONOMA, California — Kurt Busch wasted no time during Friday’s final practice at Sonoma Raceway, scorching the fastest time of the session at 76.163 seconds (94.061 mph), edging Denny Hamlin by 0.040 seconds. Martin Truex, Jr., Jamie McMurray, Kevin Harvick, Chris Buescher, Brad Keselowski, Trevor Bayne, Aric Almirola, and Michael McDowell rounded out the top-10. Bayne, who was in the bottom eighth during morning practice, drastically improved this session and ended up eighth quickest. Sonoma marks Bayne’s his first start since Dover in May. WithRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor After getting to enjoy a much needed week off, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is back in business with a little road course racing. This week, the series makes the trek out to California wine country to take on the 1.990 mile Sonoma Raceway, a 12-turn technical road course situated about 30 miles north of San Francisco. This week’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 consists of 110 laps, which calculates out to 218.9 miles, or 350 kilometers. Over the years, the course at Sonoma Raceway has goneRead More