This year marks Martin Truex Jr.’s final season in the Cup Series, as he recently announced his retirement. “It’s been incredible. It’s been a hell of a ride. I’m excited about the future, and I’m not really sure what that looks like yet,” he said during his announcement.
However, his last season isn’t going smoothly, ending the regular season with a DNF at Darlington and barely making the playoffs in 16th place. His struggles continued with another DNF at Atlanta in the first playoff race, leaving him at the bottom of the standings. Dale Earnhardt Jr. agrees that his friend’s chances of a second title are fading fast.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. thinks Martin Truex Jr. deserves to be out.
Truex’s misfortune persisted at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where a wreck with Ryan Blaney and Chris Buescher on Lap 205 of the Quaker State 400 left him 35th with only four points. Now, he’s below the playoff cut line, 19 points behind Ty Gibbs, who’s in 12th. With six consecutive finishes of 24th or worse and only three top-20 finishes in his last 13 races, Truex could be the first to exit the playoffs.
This was discussed on the September 11 episode of the Dale Jr. Download. Andrew brought up an article about potential first-round playoff exits, noting that several drivers had anonymously picked Truex. Earnhardt Jr. immediately responded, “He deserves it. He deserves that distinction,” but not just because of Truex’s performance—ias for a more personal reason.
When Andrew asked, “Distinction of what?” Junior recalled a past moment, saying, “When Harvick asked him earlier this year who’s the better racer between me and Chase Elliott, he picked Chase. I’m a good friend of Martin Truex Jr., so yeah. I’m Petty.”
Back in April, on Kevin Harvick’s podcast, Harvick asked a panel of Joe Gibbs drivers, including Truex, who was the better driver—Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Chase Elliott. All agreed statistically that Elliott was the better driver, including Earnhardt’s long-time friend Truex.
Truex had said, “(Elliott) does have a championship, yeah that’s a Cup Championship. Yeah gotta go (with Chase)!” Dale Jr. hasn’t forgotten, joking, “He picked Chase. I am a good friend of Martin Truex Jr.! So yeah… I am petty. I’m petty as hell,” he laughed.
Dale Jr. likely expected Truex to side with him, given their long history. Early in Truex’s NASCAR career, he lived with Earnhardt Jr., and they formed a close bond. Reflecting on those times, Dale Jr. once said, “We spent a ton of time, drinking in the basement, going to bars, hanging out on the back porches, and running around on the farm like idiots. We just had a lot of fun.”
