Just one last race. That’s what Martin Truex Jr. is hoping for after Dale Earnhardt Jr. almost ruled himself out of next year’s Xfinity Series appearance at Bristol Motor Speedway. Truex Jr. is all set to hang up his gloves and helmet as a full-time driver at the end of the ongoing season and compete in NASCAR on a part-time basis from 2025. The 44-year-old has expressed his desire to compete against Dale Jr. once more, even though the JR Motorsports owner is looking to prioritize broadcasting duties going forward.

The pair go back a long way, having been teammates at Dale Earnhardt, Inc. for four years. Over the years, they have built a healthy relationship of mutual respect and admiration, despite the many battles they have fought against each other on the racetrack.

Martin Truex Jr. hails ‘mentor’ Dale Jr.

After years of speculation, Martin Truex Jr. announced two days before the Cup Series race at Iowa Speedway that the curtains would close on his illustrious career at the end of the season. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver won the championship in 2017, which was also Dale Jr.’s last season at NASCAR’s highest level. Just like the driver-turned-broadcaster, Truex Jr. is also a two-time Xfinity Series winner and is hoping that the duo can turn back the clock and compete against each other one last time during the 2025 season. With Junior taking on a broadcasting role at Amazon Prime Video next year, it remains to be seen if the MTJ’s wish will be fulfilled.

Speaking in a press conference ahead of the 2024 Bass Pro Shops Night Race, Martin Truex Jr. said, “I learned a lot of the ropes of how things go from him. Just tag along, learned a lot of things that he got to do, and got to experience a lot of things that I would never have at that point in my career. A lot of fun, a lot of memories together. We got to go to Victory Lane together which was really cool. I told him, ‘Can you just do one more year in the Xfinity Series so that we can race together one last time?’ Definitely a ton of good memories and an amazing start to my career because of him.”

The possibility of Martin Truex Jr. and Dale Jr. sharing a stage once again in the Xfinity Series is not beyond the realm of possibility. After an impressive seventh-place result at Bristol Motor Speedway, the JR Motorsports team owner remained coy about his future and refused to rule out the possibility of making an appearance in 2025. When asked about his participation on the short track next year, he went on to say “I just might”, leaving fans excited about the prospect of seeing the veteran in action once again.

As things stand, there are plenty of uncertainties surrounding JR Motorsports that Dale Jr. needs to take into account. The team is going through a transition phase, with Connor Zilisch joining as a full-time driver next season and Carson Kvapil rumored to be moving from Late Model to the Xfinity Series. Meanwhile, both Sam Mayer and Brandon Jones who are in the team’s existing lineup, are expected to leave. This means that the 49-year-old needs to prioritize what’s best for his team before committing to Martin Truex Jr.

Truex Jr. calm ahead of crucial race at Bristol

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For now, Martin Truex Jr. will be fully focused on getting a good result at Bristol Motor Speedway, in what is the final Round of 16 playoff race. The veteran is looking to end his season on a high, despite securing poor results in the opening two postseason races at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Watkins Glen International. He is currently 14 points outside the cutline, which means a top-five result may be necessary for him to keep his title hopes alive going into Kansas.

Speaking in the pre-race press conference, the veteran Joe Gibbs Racing driver said, “Yeah, I mean it’s our last shot, right? So yeah, I don’t know. I wouldn’t say nervous, just you kind of just want to get it going. You know, the next 24 hours, there’s going to be a lot to talk about, a lot to think about. A lot of guesswork about how do we approach the race. So yeah, we’ll see. But I wouldn’t say it’s nervous. I mean, I’ve been doing this long enough that I just look forward to the opportunity.”

Martin Truex Jr. hasn’t been in the best form of late, with his 20th place finish at ‘The Glen’ being his best result since an eighth-place result at Pocono Raceway. The 44-year-old hasn’t secured a single win this year either, making it to the postseason on points alongside teammate Ty Gibbs. This season will be his only chance of winning another Cup Series championship, but results will need to drastically change if has any hopes of going all the way to Championship 4 and lifting the title at Phoenix Raceway.