Martin Truex Jr. expressed his frustration ahead of the Watkins Glen race, noting, “Just a little bit frustrated with how things have gone lately. No matter what we do, it is wrong.” The 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion, who is in his final season before retiring, has had a challenging year. Despite his high hopes, Truex was winless throughout the regular season and barely made the playoffs. His struggles continued in the first playoff race at Atlanta, where he crashed out. At Watkins Glen, he was in dire need of points but failed to secure a top-15 finish, which he attributes to the actions of the “best driver in the world.”
Truex’s disappointment was clear after Watkins Glen’s race, which ended in a dramatic showdown between Shane van Gisbergen and Chris Buescher, with Buescher taking the win and SVG finishing second. Truex had a difficult day, having finished 35th in Atlanta and needing a strong performance at Watkins Glen. He started the race from P2 and led the final two laps of Stage 1. However, he fell to 23rd by the end of Stage 2. Despite battling his way back to 16th place in the final stage, he was ultimately pushed out of the top 15 by Kyle Larson.
With just three laps remaining, Larson was defending his top-15 position against Todd Gilliland. Larson’s aggressive maneuver caused Gilliland to crash into Chase Elliott and Josh Berry, with Truex also being pushed into the outside wall. After the final restart, Truex finished 20th, while Larson moved up to 12th. Truex’s frustration was evident in his post-race comments, where he criticized Larson’s driving. “I just don’t really understand how guys call themselves the best in the world when they just drive through everyone on restarts at the end of these races,” Truex said. “So it’s very frustrating, but it is what it is these days so I am out of here.” This remark was a response to Larson’s claim of being the best all-round driver in the world, made in a comparison with Formula One’s Max Verstappen.
Truex’s situation is difficult. He entered Watkins Glen in 15th place in the playoff standings and remained there. Although his deficit of 19 points was reduced to 14 below the cutoff line, the upcoming Bristol race is crucial for his playoff hopes. Conversely, Larson’s aggressive tactics benefited him, moving him from 10th to 9th in the playoff standings and increasing his points cushion from +15 to +25.
Truex wasn’t the only driver affected by Larson’s aggression. His teammate, Denny Hamlin, also faced difficulties. Starting 22nd after a poor qualifying effort, Hamlin was involved in a spin with Christopher Bell and Kyle Busch, which put him a lap down before he later received a free pass. Further trouble came in Stage 2 when a three-wide battle with Brad Keselowski and Larson led to Keselowski pushing Hamlin into the wall, causing significant damage.
Hamlin’s team attributed the incident to Larson and NASCAR, expressing their frustration on the radio: “Who spun us? Three wide with the 5 and 6. 5 squeezed us with the 6, ran us out of room you know?” Hamlin finished the race in 23rd place and criticized Keselowski for not yielding, stating, “We were three-wide and [Keselowski], I thought, could have let off there because we were so far ahead. He kept it three-wide, and I wrecked.” Hamlin also noted that the playoff tracks this year are not favorable, leading to high attrition and potentially eliminating strong cars from contention.
Hamlin fell into the elimination zone, dropping from +2 to -6 points below the cutoff line, while Truex faces a similar situation. Both drivers’ last chance for redemption will be the Bristol race, where Hamlin has performed well in recent years, having won the event the last two times. Truex also has a solid track record at Bristol, having finished second in the previous race.
“I Am Out of Here” – Livid Martin Truex Jr. Sounds Off on Cup Star’s Blatant Antics Tainting NASCAR
