Toyota Racing – Martin Truex Jr.
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 12, 2020) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. was made available to media at Daytona 500 Media Day:
MARTIN TRUEX JR, No.19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Did you feel comfortable with James Small being named your new crew chief?
“For sure. I felt real comfortable with it. It felt like Cole (Pearn) just stayed home for the weekend, which he did, I guess. Yeah, everything seems cool. He seems comfortable with his new role and all the decisions that are on his shoulders now, and so far he’s done a good job.”
Could you talk about your relationship with Joe Gibbs and kind of what you came to expect about him in just talking to the other drivers.
“Well, it’s been exciting to work for him, and certainly I’ve learned a lot about him and about the company in a little over the year that I’ve been there. But it’s amazing to see the way he leads the place and how everybody looks up to him and the amount of work he puts in is amazing. I think he eats, breathes and sleeps racing, and if he’s not meeting with a sponsor, he’s at the shop. It doesn’t matter what time of day it is. I feel like he’s always there. He does a great job of motivating people and a great job of making sure everybody has what they need to perform.”
Do you remember what your first thoughts were when you first learned that this Super Bowl winning coach is going into racing?
“Oh, I was pretty young then, so I don’t know ‑‑ I remember that I thought it was really cool, but other than that, I was young. I didn’t really understand just how big of a deal it really was and what racing was all about at this level back then. Obviously he came in at a good time when the teams were smaller and you could kind of get your foot in the door and start a team. It would be much more difficult to do that today, I believe.”
How is the communication with you and James Small so far?
“So far it’s been good. I think James has been right there on the front lines with us the past few seasons, and obviously he wasn’t out in the spotlight because he was an engineer and not a crew chief, but I feel like he’s really doing the same things as before, and our communication really hasn’t changed a whole lot. I just feel like it’s business as usual. From that standpoint, it feels comfortable, and he’s done a good job of just keeping things the way we’ve always done them. Not trying to change, not trying to be somebody ‑‑ change the team up to be the way he wants it. He knows what we have works, and his approach is so similar to Cole’s that it’s really been seamless so far. Hopefully that continues to be the case.”
Did you like the fact that he even embraced the tee shirt?
“Yeah, and I’m not surprised because he always has worn a tee shirt. Like I said, him and Cole are kind of like twins. One is from Canada, one is from Australia, but I’m pretty sure in some way they’re related. They’re very, very similar, and from that standpoint, I think that’s a good thing.”
Kind of an oddball question, but is there a best and the worst thing to eat before a race?
“There’s a lot of things that you probably shouldn’t. Anything spicy is probably a bad idea. I keep it simple: chicken, rice, maybe steak, rice, something like that, a little salad or something. But yeah, nothing too heavy or nothing that’s going to upset your stomach, obviously.”
What’s considered fair when it comes to blocking here?
“Well, I think lately anything is fair. It tends to cause a lot of crashes, too, but it seems like that’s par for the course in speedway racing these days is just block until you crash and go to the next one.”
With James coming in from Australia, he has the Supercar background. Obviously with the new car coming out, how do you think he can bring that knowledge over?
“Yeah, that’s an interesting question, and I don’t know much about those cars, and I don’t know how similar the cars that we’re going to have are to those, but certainly his experience, I’m sure there’s things that he’ll think of or say, hey, we used to do this maybe, and that could help us possibly, especially on road courses. Yeah, it’s going to be interesting to try to figure that thing out, it’s going to be so different than what we’re all used to in NASCAR, and it will be the first time we have independent rear suspension, and that doesn’t sound like a big change, but it’s huge. I mean, we go from a straight axle that we’ve had forever and ever with trailing arms to independent rear suspension, it’s going to be interesting to see how the engineers translate all that stuff, and how do we make the cars feel like we want them to. I don’t know. It’s possible that it feels way different. It’ll be interesting.”
Do you have any thoughts on going to the West Coast after Daytona?
“Yeah, I feel good. I think we really learned a lot last year about the 550 package. I think early on it was a challenge. A little bit of our slow start last year was mostly due I felt like to that car and those rules and the way you have to drive it, and I really had to change a lot of the things I was used to doing, and I feel like by the end of the year we really had our arms around it from the standpoint of how to approach certain tracks. The downforce versus drag thing is all very, very difficult to figure out. There’s a lot of ‑‑ there’s so many options that you can pick, and I feel like you don’t really know exactly what you had until the race was over. You made a lot of decisions going into race weekends and practice that’s really hard to determine whether you made the right decisions. You really need to get into the race and run the race and figure that out. So I felt like we learned a lot about all that stuff last year, and we’re really comfortable with it now. Like I said, I had to learn a lot and change a lot of the stuff that I did behind the wheel, and hopefully because all those things we learned, hopefully we can get a quicker start this year, and hopefully that translates into more than seven wins.”
Do you feel good about eight wins in 2020?
“Yeah, I do. I feel like we should have had more than seven last year, and we’re always trying to be better, so we’ll see. All we can do is try, but I’m excited about it.”
How do you think that the changes to the short track package is going to affect the racing at Phoenix?
“I think it’ll be better. I think there’s more opportunities to make passes, especially at the front with the leader. Certainly last year with the super high downforce and the short tracks, it was a challenge. It was a real challenge to run behind a car, to get close to that car, and so track position was super critical. And I think this year it’ll go back the other way. Hopefully enough that the races are really good. I think it’ll be better for sure, short tracks and road courses, it’s a positive change, and I’m looking forward to it. I think that package suits us well, and it’s something we’ve had success with in years past. We’ll just see. I’m looking forward to it.”
What’s your favorite Jimmie Johnson story?
“Oh, there’s a lot of them. God, he’s just such a good guy. That’s the biggest story I can tell you is if you ever need anything, you call Jimmie Johnson, know what I mean? It doesn’t matter what it is, and he’ll, yes, sir, he’ll do it right there for you, drop whatever he has to do. Just a super good guy, and you wouldn’t know he won seven championships and 80‑some races. That’s the best story I have, that I can tell.”
Is it going to be weird not having him around next season?
“I’d say yeah. I think it is, because he’s been here so long. I can remember coming up through the ranks and he was already in Cup winning races. A cool story that I have was back when he drove in the Busch Series in the 92 car for what was ‑‑ yeah, Herzog, they had like a driver tryout thing or something. Anyway, I went to Kentucky to test that car the year Jimmie was driving it because they were thinking of putting me in it the next year, so that was kind of a cool story. They raced there the day before, or I guess it was a Saturday night race and I went there on money to test, so that was pretty neat to get to drive in one of the cars that he raced.”
Would eight wins make it a successful season for Joe Gibbs Racing?
“Well, 19 would. I mean, that’s what we had last year. I mean, if you’re talking about the whole organization, I think –”
Well, for you and for the organization.
“I think for the organization, 19 is a goal. It’s going to be a tough one to reach. That’s a lot of wins, and last year was an incredible year. I think for us, it’s hard to just say a number. Like will we be happy with seven, will we be happy with eight. I think we’d like to win more than we ever have, which eight is our best season, so eight would be great. But also I think if we’re competitive each and every week and we’re in position to win races and we can make it far in the playoffs, all those things are important. I would probably rather win zero races and the championship than win seven and finish second again. So we’ll just see how that all plays out.”
After seeing how the organization works for a year, what is being done at Joe Gibbs Racing that’s really helped them separate themselves?
“You know, I will say that it’s not just one thing. It can’t be just one thing. I think it’s just across the board. It’s the approach, and it starts at the top with Coach and the way he leads the team and makes sure that everybody there has all the things they need. Every department has good people in it. It’s just an amazing place to see that many people work together so well. You have different personalities, and you think about 500 people. How do you make them all work together and continue to push hard to constantly be better, to do all these little things, building cars, parts and pieces, finding the sponsorship, all the things that it takes. They just do it all at a high level, and that’s what it takes. To be able to be atop this sport is really, really difficult. There’s a lot of great teams, a lot of great drivers, and it takes everybody pulling in the same direction, and that’s what Coach is able to get out there and get it done.”
You’ve been with a few teams, obviously. Do you sense things are done more smoothly or better?
“I’d say it just ‑‑ from top to bottom it’s just, yeah, it’s more complete. It’s more streamlined. Just a lot of smart people is all I can tell you. I’m really honored to be able to drive their cars and work with them because it’s pretty amazing what they do.”
Was it fun to be a part of a team last season?
“It’s really fun. It’s hard. I think there’s no secrets. We share everything in our meetings. It’s hard to one‑up those guys on a consistent basis. That’s what’s fun about it, though. It’s a huge challenge. I think we all push each other to be better as drivers, as teams, the way the crew chiefs work together, the engineers, you name it. They all work together well, but it’s really hard to find a way to beat those guys, but it’s fun, as well. It’s kind of the race within the race. You’re trying to beat your teammates, and you know if you do, you’re going to have a pretty good day. That’s always fun.”
Furniture Row had an alliance with JGR, but the fact that you’re going head‑to‑head against Kyle and are in meetings all the time with him, at the shop with him, what did you learn about Kyle that maybe you didn’t know prior to being his teammate?
“You know, I would say that I didn’t really learn anything that surprised me. I felt like I knew him pretty well when I was at Furniture Row. I think the biggest thing is just having ‑‑ when we were at Furniture Row, they were okay with us finishing second. They weren’t real happy when we beat them, you know. So now they’re happy when we win, and that’s a little bit different. As easy as it sounds, it is kind of a big deal. So you know that you’re getting all the best stuff. There’s not something that maybe they have for a few weeks that you didn’t know about, which in the past there was things like that. It’s just nice to know you have those guys behind you because they’re really good at what they do.”
What’s your favorite track to race on?
“It’s difficult to pick a favorite. I really enjoy most all the tracks. I really, really love Darlington, though. Like I would say if I had to pick one, it would probably be Darlington or Homestead.”
A lot of guys have been saying Darlington. Why is that?
“It’s just unique in that it’s really fast but it’s really narrow. The surface being old and the tires wearing out the way they do, it’s a huge challenge, and it’s a lot of fun.”
What about least favorite track?
“Least favorite track, probably Talladega. Talladega. Least favorite. Second least favorite is Daytona.”
Do you have any thoughts on the schedule because next year Super Bowl is going to be February 7, Daytona is going to be the 14th, they’re talking about condensing the week and running the Clash the same weekend as the 500. Your thoughts?
“I think it would be good. Obviously I don’t know that we want to go up against the Super Bowl. I don’t think anybody wants to go up against that on TV. I think it’s a good idea. Condensing is always good. One week in Daytona, that would be fine. It would be more fun to race consistently when we’re here instead of wasting time and being here for three days and doing nothing. I’d be all for that.”
I know for fun you do fishing and hunting, I guess, but have you done competitive fishing and would you do that being a competitive person?
“I have a few times. I’ve fished a few tournaments. I never really took them too seriously because I don’t want to take the fun out of the fishing part, but I do get somewhat serious about it even if I’m not in a tournament. I like to catch. I don’t like to fish, I like to catch. So I work really hard at trying to be better and catching. It’s been pretty good this off‑season.”
You also have a sponsor like that, too ‑‑
“It helps a lot. If I need something, I know where to get it.”
From age 20 to 30 to almost 40 over the course of a career, what have you found that you have learned, gained in terms of your driving repertoire, as a passer, as a restarter? What are some of the things that you learned have really opened your eyes and made you this well‑rounded driver that you are right now?
“Ooh, that’s a good one. I think it’s just something that you never stop learning. This sport changes so much. It’s week to week. It’s car changes, it’s tires, it’s tracks changing. I think what separates the really good guys, they’re able to change and adapt quickly. Certainly team‑wise, you have to have a great team, and I obviously have been in a great place the last five years or so. But I have learned a ton, and the more you run up front the more you learn how much those little things matter. So the key is just putting all that together, I think, learning ‑‑ winning, you learn a lot when you win. You learn how to ‑‑ I guess you learn how to win. Sounds easy enough, and I won coming up through the ranks, but not consistently in Cup for a long time. I learned a lot about myself. I learned a lot about how to drive, how to do things right, how to make good decisions under pressure, but it’s hard to learn those little things until you start winning. And winning consistently I think teaches you a lot.”
If you were developing a young driver right now, what would you want them to focus on? Where do you even start? It seems like you can’t be a one‑note guy because that one thing you do well could be gone.
“That’s a good question. I don’t know. I think a lot of guys that are really good have come up different ways. I don’t know that there’s really a way you can measure a driver until he gets in the Cup Series. We’ve seen guys be really successful in Xfinity, not translate that into the Cup Series. It just takes so much to do it well. You can’t really measure a guy until he’s in the Cup Series.”
Thinking of all your team changes throughout your career, what’s the biggest thing day‑to‑day life that can change from team to team? You go somewhere and go, oh, that’s my responsibility at this team or you have meetings when?
“I would say it’s not huge. I would say that most teams do things pretty similar. From a driver standpoint, your job is basically pretty much the same everywhere you go. I would say that where I’m at now, there is more emphasis placed on meetings and things, and that’s just preparation. I think it shows a lot of the reason for our success has been really good preparation and understanding things ahead of time and being prepared.”
Is that something that you become more and more aware of, that this is a race that ‑‑ are you chasing it?
“Not until we come back. When we’re here for the race, it’s like, okay, yeah, I haven’t won it yet. The second still hurts from a couple years ago in ’16. I remember that vividly. But I don’t know, it’s a huge race. It is the big one. Everybody wants to win it. I’m no different. But I mean, I don’t lose sleep at night because I haven’t won it. I don’t think about it, I guess, any differently than any other race, other than when I come here, I don’t really worry about points. I just try to figure out a way to win it. Obviously I haven’t done that yet. I think the biggest thing for me is just trying to get to the end. Every time we are around at the finish of one of these races, we’re in the mix. We have a shot. It’s just so hard ‑‑ I’ve had such a hard time trying to find a way to finish Superspeedway races. I’ve tried everything, riding around, racing hard, staying in the front. The other day I’m running third and I get wrecked on a restart. It’s like no matter what I do, I can’t find a way to finish. I’m never the guy that caused the wrecks, but I’m always the guy in the middle of them. It’s very, very frustrating, very frustrating, and I don’t really know what to do about it. That’s really my focus every time we come here is just trying to figure that out. How do I get to the end? I know if we get to the end, we’re going to have a chance. So hopefully this weekend we can figure it out.”
Will you go up and see Cole Pearn or anything in the future?
“I was a snowboarder for a long time. I kind of gave it up when I started racing in the Cup Series because I really do not want to break a leg in the off‑season that’s pretty short, so I haven’t done it since I think ’07, ’08, but definitely when I retire, I will join Cole at his place up there, and we’ll shred some powder. I look forward to it. But I have talked to him a couple times. I actually talked to him the other day after the Clash, he asked me how it went, he was up in the mountains and didn’t get to see it, so we talked about that. But we keep in touch for sure, and he’s doing well.”
# # #
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 38 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold 2.8 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2018.
Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit ToyotaNewsroom.com.
