Soccer line sport > Blog > Sport > Martin Truex Jr. on NASCAR’s regular-season title: “I think it’s a huge deal for all of us, honestly” – The Denver Post
Martin Truex Jr. on NASCAR’s regular-season title: “I think it’s a huge deal for all of us, honestly” – The Denver Post
Winning NASCAR’s regular-season points championship is unquestionably a big deal, but no trophy is awarded and few will remember who won when Round 1 of the playoffs begin next month.
Still, driver Martin Truex Jr. of Denver-based Furniture Row Racing envisions a celebration when he clinches the title as early as Saturday night in Bristol, Tenn. Those sentiments are echoed by FRR general manager Joe Garone, the Colorado native who oversees what has been stock-car racing’s best team this year.
“It’s a huge deal for all of us, honestly,” Truex said in a phone interview from his North Carolina home.
“Does it guarantee getting to the final four?” Garone said of the team’s Denver race shop. “Absolutely not. But it’s certainly a position you want to be in.”
Truex, who has a series-high four victories and leads in virtually every key statistical category, carries a 129-point lead over Kyle Larson into Bristol, which is race No. 24 of the 26-race regular season. If Truex leaves Bristol with a 121-point advantage or more, he will clinch the regular season title and pocket 15 playoff bonus points to help him advance through the three rounds of the 10-race playoffs.
Truex already has a series-high 35 playoff bonus points, 18 more than anyone else. All playoff drivers will begin with 2,000 points, with each driver’s accrued bonus points tacked on. Four drivers will be eliminated in each round of the postseason, setting up a final four in Homestead, Fla., in a best-finish-takes-home-the-championship scenario.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, pits during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Aug. 13, 2017 in Brooklyn, Michigan.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, leads the field in a restart during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Aug. 13, 2017 in Brooklyn, Michigan.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, and crew chief Cole Pearn celebrate in victory lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
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Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 DEWALT Flexvolt Toyota, leads Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pure Michigan 400 at Michigan International Speedway on Aug. 13, 2017 in Brooklyn, Michigan.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, leads Matt Kenseth, driver of the #20 Toyota Care Toyota, during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates with a burnout after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, crosses the finish line to win the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, drives into victory lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
Jared C. Tilton, Getty Images
Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series I Love NY 355 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 6, 2017 in Watkins Glen, New York.
Charles Krupa, The Associated Press
Driver Martin Truex Jr. places the pole winner sticker on his car prior to a practice session for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series 301 auto race at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, N.H., Saturday, July 15, 2017.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates with a burnout after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway on July 8, 2017 in Sparta, Kentucky.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates with the checkered flag after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway on July 8, 2017.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, pits during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Quaker State 400 presented by Advance Auto Parts at Kentucky Speedway on July 8, 2017 in Sparta, Kentucky.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER BOATS Toyota, walks down pit road during qualifying for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway on April 28, 2017 in Richmond, Va.
David Becker, The Associated Press
Martin Truex Jr. celebrates after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race, Sunday, March 12, 2017, in Las Vegas.
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Kasey Kahne, driver of the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet, races Martin Truex Jr., driver of the No. 78 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER BOATS Toyota, during the 59th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 26, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Fla.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the (78) Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER BOATS Toyota, practices for the 59th Annual DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 24, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Fla.
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Martin Truex Jr. stands on the grid during qualifying for the DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 19, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Fla.
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Martin Truex Jr., driver of the Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Boats Toyota, is involved in an on-track incident during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 20, 2016 in Homestead, Fla.
“I hate to say this, but we’re so focused on Homestead you just kind of look straight through it,” Garone said of the regular-season championship. “It’s certainly a gauge of how the season has gone, how the team has been performing. But it’s all preparation to get to Homestead.”
Said Truex: “Being someone who can consistently win and run up front and really do what we’ve done this year, it’s been awesome. Probably a few weeks after the playoffs start it will kind of be forgotten, but it will be a huge accomplishment for our team to win the regular season. It makes me think about the old days, when there was no playoffs, and what this year could be.”
Playoff bonus points were established this year, perhaps partly because of what happened to Truex a year ago. He won two of the early playoff races but was knocked of the second round after blowing an engine at Talladega, Ala. Based on his body of work throughout the season, he deserved to be in the final four at Homestead.
“If that happens this year, we’ll have enough points to make it through the round,” Garone said. “If you end up having some real bad luck, the bonus points can carry you to a degree, for sure. So it’s huge, or it could be huge.”
FRR’s second team, the No. 77 driven by rookie Erik Jones, is 16th in the standings and needs a victory to clinch a playoff berth. Jones finished third Sunday in Michigan, his third consecutive top 10 showing.
“I’d like to be at where we are today four months ago, or three months ago, but that might be getting greedy,” Garone said of Jones and the No. 77. “I just can’t say anything negative about how that’s going, because you’re dealing with a new group of people working together, and that takes time. Doesn’t matter what sport you’re in. It takes time, and with a rookie driver, you throw that in the mix. So I look at it and think they’ve been terrific.”
League of his own
Points leader Martin Truex Jr. leads NASCAR in the following categories
