Martin Truex, Jr.

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Martin Lee Truex, Jr.

Born	June 29, 1980 (1980-06-29) (age 29)
Hometown	Mayetta, New Jersey
Achievements	2004 Nationwide Series Champion 2005 Nationwide Series Champion
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series statistics
Car #, team	#1 - Earnhardt Ganassi Racing
2008 Sprint Cup position	15th
Best cup position	11th - 2007 (Sprint Cup)
First race	2004 Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 (Atlanta)
First win	2007 Autism Speaks 400 (Dover)
Wins Top tens Poles 1 33 2
NASCAR Nationwide Series statistics
Best NNS position	1st - 2004, 2005 (Busch Series)
First race	2001 MBNA.com 200 (Dover)
Last race	2008 Sharpie Mini 300 (Bristol)
First win	2004 Sharpie Professional 250 (Bristol)
Last win	2006 Aaron's 312 (Talladega)
Wins Top tens Poles 13 57 10
Statistics current as of July 17, 2009.

Martin Lee Truex, Jr. (born June 29, 1980 in Mayetta, New Jersey) is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver. He currently drives the #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Impala SS for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing. Truex won the Nationwide Series Championship in 2004 and 2005. In 2010 he will drive the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry for Michael Waltrip Racing.

[edit] Early career

Martin was born in Ocean County, New Jersey, and grew up in the Mayetta section of Stafford Township, New Jersey.^[1] His father, Martin Sr., was a former race winner in the NASCAR Camping World East Series, then called the NASCAR Busch Grand National Division North Series. Martin Truex, Jr. attended Southern Regional High School.^[2]

The younger Truex began racing in the NASCAR Camping World East Series in 2000, and won 5 races in 4 years with a family owned team.

Truex rented a home from Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in Mooresville, North Carolina, before he purchased his own home. His cousin, Curtis Truex, Jr., races modifieds at Wall Township Speedway and currently drives late-model stock cars in the southeastern U.S. for JR Motorsports, which is owned by Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

Truex made his first NASCAR Nationwide Series start in 2001 at Dover International Speedway in his father's #56 XST Paintable Silicon Chevy. He started 19th but finished 38th after an early wreck. In 2002, Truex drove one race for Phoenix Racing at New Hampshire International Speedway, starting thirteenth but finishing 29th. He ran three races the rest of that season for his father, his best finish seventeenth at Dover.

[edit] Camping World Series

In 2000 Martin, following in his father's footsteps, began racing in the NASCAR Camping World Series, East (then called the Busch North Series). He ran three full seasons (2000 to 2002) and made limited starts in 2003. During his time in the Camping World Series Martin claimed 13 poles and 5 wins driving his family owned #56 SeaWatch Chevy.

[edit] Nationwide Series

In 2003, he began the season with his father's team, before he was hired by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. to drive his #81 Chance 2 Motorsports Chevy. He made his debut with Chance 2 at Richmond International Raceway, where he qualified sixth and led eleven laps before transmission failure forced him to a 31st place finish. He split time between Chance 2 and his father's team for the balance of the season, except at Dover, where he drove for Stanton Barrett. He had a sixth-place run at Bristol Motor Speedway, and ended the season with two consecutive second-place finishes. He ran a total of ten races that season.

Truex raced full time for Chance 2 in 2004. At Bristol Motor Speedway, he would earn his first career victory, and he would later add 3 more victories over the next 7 races. This would include a victory at Talladega Superspeedway which broke his car owner's streak of winning restrictor plate races in the Nationwide Series, and a victory at the final NASCAR event held at Nazareth Speedway. He took the lead in the championship after Nazareth, but lost it to Kyle Busch a few races later. However, a series of top 5's and top 10's in the second half of the season would allow Truex to pull away from Busch, clinching the Nationwide Series championship with a race to spare. While on his way to that championship, Truex made an appearance in Sprint Cup as a relief driver to Dale Earnhardt Jr., who'd suffered burns in a sports car accident. Truex started his first career Cup race for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. at Atlanta Motor Speedway later that year, qualifying 33rd and finishing 37th.

Truex stayed in the Nationwide Series to defend his championship in 2005, winning the title for the second season in a row. He won the first NASCAR Nationwide Series points race held outside the United States, in Mexico, as well as defending his Nationwide wins at Talladega and Dover International Speedway. He took his first win at Daytona International Speedway on July 1, 2005.

[edit] Sprint Cup

Truex's first appearance in the series was in 2004 multiple times,first at New Hampshire Motor Speedway replacing a sick Dale Earnhardt where he finished 31st. Also that year he ran at Atlanta Motor Speedway (finishing 37th), and Homestead-Miami Speedway(32nd). Truex ran full-time in the 2006 Sprint Cup (then NEXTEL cup) season in the #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. He finished in the top 10 five times and finished the 2006 season 19th in points. Coming off of two consecutive Nationwide Series championships, Truex was widely considered to be a contender in the Sprint Cup Series. However, by his own admission, Truex's 2006 season had been somewhat disappointing. He was behind fellow rookies Denny Hamlin (who finished 3rd in points) and Clint Bowyer (who finished 17th in points). Furthermore, Truex had a better later part of the 2006 season. He experienced a turnaround of sorts, finishing 6th, 11th, 5th and 2nd at Dover, Kansas, Talladega and Homestead, respectively. In 2006, he also made six starts in the Nationwide Series for Earnhardt, winning at Talladega.

Truex got his first win of the 2007 at the NASCAR Nextel All-Star Open, securing a spot in the 2007 Nextel All-Star Challenge, where he finished 10th. A few weeks later, he won the Autism Speaks 400 scoring his first Sprint Cup Series win with an interval of seven seconds between himself and pole sitter Ryan Newman. He led over half of the race (219 of 400 laps). His performance led to a jump in overall points advancing him to 13th. He followed this performance at Dover with a third place finish at Pocono Raceway, and a second place finish at Michigan Speedway. With a 15th place finish in the Chevy Rock and Roll 400, Truex clinched a spot in his first Chase for the Sprint Cup, and finished 11th in points at season's end. He did not win in 2008, but had eleven top-tens and finished 15th in points.

2008 car

At the beginning of the 2009 season, his team, Dale Earnhardt, Inc. merged with Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates and be renamed Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. Truex began the year by winning the pole for the Daytona 500.

[edit] 2010 and the Future

At the conclusion of the 2009 season, Truex will leave Earnhardt Ganassi Racing and will drive the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry for Michael Waltrip Racing, and will receive owner points from the #55.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Truex's official site
• MartinTruexJr.net
• NASCAR.com
• Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
• Truex talks about his 2004 Busch Series Championship plus other issues
• Martin Truex, Jr. Career Statistics