Truex falls short at Dover after pit stop mistake

He didn’t quite have the best car or the dominating car, but Martin Truex Jr. was there at the end in case Kyle Larson would happen to make a mistake and leave an opening.

Truex Jr had a decent car at Dover International Speedway, taking the lead away from his teammate Denny Hamlin on Lap 229. It would be the only time that Truex was out front. When he took the Stage 2 win, one of the No. 19 pit crew members slipped while coming around to change the right rear tire. The stop would eventually cost Truex the race win.

It caused Truex to lose a couple of spots on pit road. It was just enough and he was unable to take the lead from Larson and challenge him for the race win. He did have a little bit of help in the late stages but he ultimately fell short and wound up second.

“Just ran out of time there,” Truex Jr told MRN Radio. “Got bobbled up in traffic pretty good and so did the 42 (Larson). We just really ran out of time. We were six seconds back after the pit stop. At the end, we were maybe one. We did a good job of gaining on them but it’s always gaining on the leader but a harder time with the lap guys. The same thing being said, I caught some at the end and they weren’t very courteous. It’s just the way it goes.”

“We had a very fast car, our Bass Pro Toyota was strong. We had a shot at winning for sure. It’s the playoffs, it’s the best of the best and one little tiny mistake like that, five positions or whatever on the restart, it’s game over. I hate that it happened, but I know our guys are working hard to get it cleaned up. Overall, it was a really good points day. Just go to Talladega next week and hopefully, we can at least make it to the finish, which we haven’t been good at there. I’m feeling good going forward and looking forward to Kansas as well.”

The second-place finish was Truex’s 13th top five of the season.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SpeedwayMedia.com

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Best New Zealand Online Casinos

RacingJunk.com and Leaf Racewear Safety Equipment Giveaway

Latest articles

NHRA AT VEGAS 2: Team Chevy Race Report | Notes & Quotes

Austin Prock, competing in the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, and Brittany Force, driving the Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, both won their respective categories

B. FORCE, PROCK, STANFIELD & HERRERA STRIKE IT BIG AT FORD PERFORMANCE NHRA NATIONALS

Two-time Top Fuel world champion Brittany Force won for the first time in 39 races on Monday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Toyota Gazoo Racing North America Las Vegas Fall Nationals Nationals Post-Race Report – 11.04.24

Doug Kalitta fell just short of a season sweep at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, coming home as the runner-up in the Las Vegas Fall Nationals.

Candas, Porter and Martinez To Co-Drive RAFA Racing by JDX Porsche in Endurance Challenge...

Taking “Race As Family Always” to heart, RAFA Racing by JDX has unveiled the driver line-up for the Porsche Endurance Challenge North America finale at Circuit of the Americas.