As Joey Logano celebrated a third NASCAR Cup Series championship by winning the 2024 season-finale event at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, November 10, Martin Truex Jr. was left with mixed reactions on pit road as he recorded a 17th-place result in his final event as a full-time competitor in NASCAR’s premier series.
The 2017 Cup Series champion from Mayetta, New Jersey, commenced his final weekend as a full-time competitor by being the second-fastest during the finale’s lone practice session on Friday, November 8, while sporting a special red throwback scheme to his No. 19 Bass Pro Shops/Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE entry that mirrored the scheme Truex sported when he made his Cup debut at Atlanta Motor Speedway in October 2004. A day later, he notched his 25th and final pole position in NASCAR’s premier series after he posted a pole-winning lap at 134.741 mph in 26.718 seconds.
Leading the field to the green flag to commence the final event of the 2024 season, Truex would lead the first lap and lead the next eight under caution as teammate Ty Gibbs was eliminated in a single-car wreck just past the first lap. During the ensuing restart on the ninth lap, he lost the lead to Logano but would proceed to finish in second place at the first stage’s conclusion on Lap 60. Restarting in eighth place for the start of the second stage period on Lap 71, Truex would spend the entire stage period in the top 10 on the track before he settled in ninth place at the stage’s conclusion on Lap 185.
After restarting in the top 10 for the start of the final stage period with 118 laps remaining, Truex would drop out of the top-10 category in the ensuing laps. Despite being mired in 13th place with 100 laps remaining, Truex would climb up to 11th place more than 20 laps later. Then with 63 laps remaining, a late caution period for rookie Zane Smith wrecking resulted in Truex being one of several competitors pinned a lap down as he took the wave around to cycle back on the lead lap. Restarting in 11th place for the finale’s final restart period with 54 laps remaining, Truex would briefly break his way back into the top-10 mark before he dropped back into the top-15 mark. Ultimately, Truex would also slip out of the top-15 mark as he took the checkered flag in 17th place.
Despite concluding his final Cup Series season winless, Truex notched a total of five top-five results, 11 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 17.4, which was enough for him to settle in 10th place in the final championship standings in 2024.
Overall, Truex capped off an illustrious 19-year career in NASCAR’s premier series, where he achieved the 2017 championship, 34 race victories, 25 poles, 147 top-five results, 291 top-10 results, 12,747 laps led, 11 Playoff appearances and an average-finishing result of 15.3 through 693 starts. The organizations where Truex made his marks throughout his Cup Series career include Dale Earnhardt Inc., Chip Ganassi Racing, Michael Waltrip Racing, Furniture Row Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing, respectively.
In addition to winning the 2017 Cup Series championship, Truex, a two-time champion in the Xfinity Series, departs from full-time Cup competition with notable accomplishments that include capturing two Coca-Cola 600s, the 2016 Southern 500 and the 2023 Busch Light Clash victory. Named one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers in 2023, Truex is also one of 40 competitors to win across NASCAR’s top three national touring series (Cup, Xfinity and Truck Series), to date.
Amid the bevy of success he achieved throughout his Cup career, however, Truex was not shy to commence his post-race thoughts by expressing his disappointment over his top-20 result after racing towards the front during the first half of the finale.
“I’m mad,” Truex said. “I wanted [the race] to go better than that. We were pretty good early and then, lost track position. The track just continued to rubber up and get hotter, at least that’s what I felt like it was doing. I kept losing the grip, I kept losing more balance, I kept losing track position. It just all magnifies with this thing. We got caught by the caution there [with 63 laps remaining] and had to stay out on old tires and get the wave around and then, we couldn’t even race to try to go forward. It was just not a good day. Not a good day to end on, but I’m proud of the effort of my team. At least we got the lead a few laps there in the beginning.”
Amid the disappointment, Truex, who received a standing ovation during the pre-race drivers meeting before the finale, was praised and greeted on pit road by NBA legend/23XI Racing co-owner Michael Jordan and four-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon.
“It means a lot,” Truex added. “To have the respect of guys like that and what they mean to the sport and absolute legends. It makes me feel good that I’ve earned that respect over the years. It means a lot.”
With his tenure as a full-time NASCAR Cup Series competitor officially complete, what does the future hold in store for Truex, starting with the 2025 season?
“So from here forward, just go have some fun and do a little bit of racing here and there just for fun,” Truex said. “Hopefully, it’ll be less stressful than days like today.”
Truex’s part-time racing plans for the 2025 season including attempting to compete in the 67th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway remains to be determined. Chase Briscoe will take over Truex’s No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota entry on a full-time basis next season as crew chief James Small will continue to work with the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing team.
The NASCAR Cup Series teams and competitors enter an off-season period before returning to action at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, on February 2, 2025, for the annual Busch Light Clash. This event will be followed by the 67th annual running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway which is scheduled to occur on February 16, 2025, and will officially commence a new season of competition.
