Martin Truex Jr. started his NASCAR Cup Series career with Dale Earnhardt Incorporated, making a handful of race starts in 2004 and 2005. This was when Truex Jr. was an unstoppable force in the Bush Series (Now the Xfinity Series). He bagged 6 wins in both seasons, winning back-to-back championships (2004, 2005). However, he failed to achieve the same success with DEI in the Cup in the four full seasons that followed, only managing a single win in 2007.

However, once the team shut down in 2009, Truex Jr joined Michael Waltrip Racing, and it was the same story there as DEI: one win (2013) in four full seasons. Things took a turn for the better after he joined Furniture Motorsports in 2014. He had his most dominant season with them in 2017, bagging his first Cup championship. However, the most consistency that he’s had in his career came after he joined Joe Gibbs Racing in 2019 with FRM shutting down. Recently, the veteran opened up about his first win with JGR.

Martin Truex Jr beats the odds with Joe Gibbs Racing

Truex Jr ran his first Cup Season with JGR in 2019 and he came in with great momentum as he ended the 2018 season in 2nd place, inches away from his 2nd Cup Championship. His first JGR season is also his best with the team so far. In 36 races, he bagged 7 wins, 15 top 5s, and 24 top 10 finishes. The veteran driver finished the season yet again in the runner-up position. However, this season was special for another reason. As with JGR, he broke his streak of not winning on short tracks.

In 13 seasons leading up to 2019, Martin Truex Jr hadn’t won a single short-track race! Early in 2019, expressing his frustration with this, he had said, “For me personally, it is a big hole. I mean, so many laps led and dominated races, and can’t find a way to finish it.” Then came the Richmond race in the spring of 2019. He held Team Penske’s Joey Logano to get his first short-track win and his first win for JGR, which came after an 80-race drought across the three short tracks. Recently in a video posted by Joe Gibbs Racing on their Instagram, the #19 driver dwells on this.

Truex Jr., said, “The first win together at Richmond was huge because we hadn’t won there before. And we have had a lot of heartbreaks there. People said we couldn’t win on a short track and it was getting old and so it was fun to put that together finally and it was a big win for all of us. Just to get our first win at JGR together and get the ball rolling from there.” 

This broke the short-track stigma for Truex Jr, and since then, he has achieved six wins so far on short tracks in his career. Thrice in Richmond and thrice in Martinsville. On numerous occasions, he came close to getting one in Bristol but always ended up in P2. His overall consistency was off the charts with JGR.

In the 2020 season, Truex Jr. finished 7th, followed by yet another 2nd-place season finish in 2021. Truex Jr is currently in his final Cup Series season after he announced his retirement. On three occasions, he came extremely close to another championship but could not capitalize on it. With JGR MTJ’s worst season finish has been 17th in 2022, the only time he missed the playoffs with them. Similar to 2022, his last Cup Season isn’t heading towards a great finish.

Can Martin Truex Jr end his Cup Career on a high note?

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MTJ, announcing his retirement, had said, “It’s been incredible. It’s been a hell of a ride.” Well, it sure has, but the future Hall Of Famer would have wanted to have a great last season. However, that’s not been the case! In the 33 races so far, Truex Jr has remained winless and managed only five top 5 finishes, which is one of his lowest recorded top 5s in 9 years.

However, somehow managing enough points, he entered the playoffs, only to get ousted in the first round. The veteran is currently 10th in the season ranking and the closest he has come so far to a win this season has been a P2 in the spring race in Bristol. When Denny Hamlin took the checkered flag ahead of him. However, in the last couple of races, we have gotten to see the old Truex Jr. He finished 6th in the Las Vegas race. And out of the last four races, three have been top-11 finishes, including a P3 at Kansas.

Truex Jr. is desperately looking to get a win to end his career on a high note. And his chances to bag one seem high with the races coming up. First is Homestead Miami. Although he finished 29th there last year, he has a good track record there. In his 19 races there, 12 have been top 10 finishes and 10 have been top-6. Next up is Martinsville and this might be Truex Jr’s best chance. He’s won here thrice and also managed a P3 finish here last year.

Overall, there are hopes for him to bag a win if all goes well. Do you think he can end his career with a win? Let us know in the comments below.