By David Morgan, Associate Editor
NEWTON, Iowa – When you know it’s time, it’s time. And that time has come for Martin Truex, Jr.
On Friday at Iowa Speedway, the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion announced that the 2024 season would be his last in full-time Cup competition as he’ll hang up the helmet when the checkered flag falls I November.
It will bring a 19-year career of racing full-time at NASCAR’s highest level to a close and cement a career that has included marquee wins and championships not only in the Cup Series, but in other levels of the sport as well.
“It’s been incredible, it’s been a hell of a ride,” Truex said. “I’m excited about the future, and not really sure what that looks like yet, but feel good about my decision.
“I just want to thank Coach (Joe Gibbs), everybody at JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing), Toyota. They’ve been absolutely amazing to (pause) — to be able to win a championship is something I’ve always dreamed of and to be able to get that done was amazing. Just feel really lucky to be surrounded by so many great people over the years.
“To all the guys I’ve worked with – crew members, crew chiefs, team owners, you name it across the board, it’s been a true honor. I’ll miss all those people for sure, but I won’t be gone, I’ll be around still. We’re going to do some stuff together, have some fun and enjoy life a little bit and wind down.”
Truex noted is his press conference announcing his retirement that while he has waffled with the decision to step away in recent seasons before deciding to stay, this time around it just felt different and he knew it was the right time to make the call to move on.
“Just felt like the right time for me,” he said. “Honestly, I’ve thought about it a lot the past few seasons and just waited for that feeling in my mind to be positive, like this is okay, I’m good, I want to do something else. Yeah, something just felt different this year for me. I felt like it was time to slow down and do something else.”
After banking back-to-back NASCAR Xfinity Series championships with Chance 2 Motorsports, an early iteration of the Dale Earnhardt Jr. owned JR Motorsports team that still competes in the series, Truex took the step up to the Cup Series full-time in 2006 with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. and would score his first win a year later.
Truex would move on to a tumultuous stint with Michael Waltrip Racing in 2010, only scoring…
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