Truex has "no idea how we finished fourth" in Martinsville NASCAR Cup round

Martin Truex Jr "had no idea" how he secured a fourth-place finish in the penultimate NASCAR Cup round of the season at Martinsville after facing multiple issues in the race.

Martin Truex Jr., Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry Auto-Owners Insurance

Although Truex ran up front for most of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway, he never seemed to have quite the speed of his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin.

Truex, however, was in a far more precarious situation in points than Hamlin and needed every available position to have a chance of breaking into the Championship 4 - among whom the title will be decided next weekend at Phoenix.

As the intensity among the playoff drivers ramped up in the final 50 or so laps, Truex seemed to find himself beset by problems: he got knocked into the wall one lap by Kurt Busch, he had water spewing out of the front of his #19 Toyota at one point and a large piece of sheet metal caused a tyre rub on his left front.

Appearing in danger of losing out on his title hopes on the final two-lap restart, Truex was forced to pit to allow his team to address some of his damage.

But when most of those ahead of him decided to take the bottom lane, Truex chose the top to move up the running order and hung on to escape with a fourth-place finish.

He edged out Kyle Busch by three points for the last spot in the Championship 4.

Martin Truex Jr., Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry Auto-Owners Insurance

Martin Truex Jr., Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota Camry Auto-Owners Insurance

Photo by: Ben Earp / NKP / Motorsport Images

“I have no idea how we finished fourth, honestly,” Truex said.

“I’m going to buy a lottery ticket on the way home. It’s never an easy situation to be kind of on your last run of the race, be in (the Championship 4) one minute and out the next.

“You know there’s not a whole lot you can do other than drive. Worrying about it doesn’t do you any good. You just got to try to go, hit your marks, get the most out of your race car. Luckily, we were able to do that.”

Truex said while he focused mostly on his own race throughout the day, he did see an opportunity to gamble as drivers began choosing their lane for the final restart.

“Everybody took the bottom (lane) and I saw the hole up there (on the top lane) and I was like, ‘I have to go for it,’ and that worked out for us,” he said.

“Just thanks to everybody who helped us all year long to get us to this point.

“Hopefully, we can go to Phoenix and make them proud.”

shares
comments

Related video

Martinsville NASCAR: Bowman wins after spinning Hamlin, Championship 4 set

NASCAR summons Kyle Busch to take sensitivity training

The ex-F1 driver taking on NASCAR with a new team

The ex-F1 driver taking on NASCAR with a new team

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
James Newbold

The ex-F1 driver taking on NASCAR with a new team The ex-F1 driver taking on NASCAR with a new team

The early benefits and challenges of NASCAR's Next Gen car

The early benefits and challenges of NASCAR's Next Gen car

Plus
Plus
NASCAR
Charles Bradley

The early benefits and challenges of NASCAR's Next Gen car The early benefits and challenges of NASCAR's Next Gen car

How Penske's rookie sensation opened NASCAR's new era in style

How Penske's rookie sensation opened NASCAR's new era in style

Plus
Plus
NASCAR
Charles Bradley

How Penske's rookie sensation opened NASCAR's new era in style How Penske's rookie sensation opened NASCAR's new era in style

Six key themes to follow in the 2022 NASCAR Cup season

Six key themes to follow in the 2022 NASCAR Cup season

Plus
Plus
NASCAR
Autosport Staff

Six key themes to follow in the 2022 NASCAR Cup season Six key themes to follow in the 2022 NASCAR Cup season

How NASCAR had to learn a harsh lesson ahead of its Next Gen arrival

How NASCAR had to learn a harsh lesson ahead of its Next Gen arrival

Plus
Plus
NASCAR Cup
Daytona 500
Charles Bradley

How NASCAR had to learn a harsh lesson ahead of its Next Gen arrival How NASCAR had to learn a harsh lesson ahead of its Next Gen arrival

How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory

How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory

Plus
Plus
NASCAR
Charles Bradley

How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory How Larson took the long way round to NASCAR Cup glory

How NASCAR is gearing up for its "biggest change" in 2022

How NASCAR is gearing up for its "biggest change" in 2022

Plus
Plus
NASCAR
Jim Utter

How NASCAR is gearing up for its "biggest change" in 2022 How NASCAR is gearing up for its "biggest change" in 2022

Why Bubba Wallace’s Talladega win is such a big moment for NASCAR

Why Bubba Wallace’s Talladega win is such a big moment for NASCAR

Plus
Plus
NASCAR
Charles Bradley

Why Bubba Wallace’s Talladega win is such a big moment for NASCAR Why Bubba Wallace’s Talladega win is such a big moment for NASCAR

Subscribe