Martin Truex Jr. hasn’t claimed a victory since the fall race at Richmond Raceway in 2021, but there was a lot of hope going into the 2023 Daytona 500.
Truex appeared to have regained his rhythm from the previous years to the NextGen vehicle two weeks after winning the Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum. The 2023 NASCAR season has unfortunately started slowly for the No. 19 team, with just one top-10 result.
Before a late-race yellow wrecked a potential victory for Truex at Richmond Raceway, things were looking good for him. While the racers surrounding him had four brand-new sticker tires, the No. 19 car only had six lap scuff tires.
Truex faced a significant setback as a result of Richmond’s tendency to wear out tires, ultimately finishing in 11th place. As result of a poor tactical decision that put him in this position, another good race did not produce the desired outcome.
Truex referred to the finish of the race as “pitiful” on the radio after the event. With five to six laps remaining, Truex radioed his team to inform them that all four of his tires were flat. Unfortunately, inadequate communication was to blame for this.
When they were out of sticker tires, Small informed Truex that his car had scuffs. Truex was upset and told him that he never mentioned his No. 19 car was on scuffed tires as h e was unaware of what was happening to the car.
Later, Small informed Truex that it was pointless to inform him that his tires were worn because they were already in an undesirable situation. The 42-year-old driver brought the vehicle back to pit road in 11th place without saying anything.
One faction was yelling and hurling several profanities at the other. As said above, Truex was not informed that he was riding on damaged tires, therefore the talk wasn’t very good.
The ongoing struggle of completing a race has been a significant contributing reason to Truex’s current 51-race winless streak. However, the No. 19 team is not solely to blame because the 42-year-old driver has made blunders as well.
It’s not as though Truex can’t win races anymore; NASCAR witnessed him win the Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum. The 2022 Daytona 500 and the most recent race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway are two events in which he has been in contention to triumph.
The No. 19 team is currently having trouble with something. After being second or higher in the point standings four of the previous five seasons before the introduction of the NextGen car era in 2022, there has been a dramatic change.
Truex will have to make a quick turnaround since he’s considering retiring, or he risks being another NASCAR champion to quit the sport too soon.
