[autotag]Martin Truex Jr.[/autotag] had a very successful race at Michigan International Speedway after coming away with two playoff points. Unfortunately for Truex, it didn’t end in a victory as RFK Racing driver[autotag] Chris Buescher[/autotag] held him impressively held him off.
It was an exceptional showing by the driver of the No. 19 car as he extended his points lead to 57 points over Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron. Truex is set to earn 15 playoff points for winning the NASCAR regular season championship at Daytona International Speedway in three weeks.
Still, it is hard to stomach a second-place finish after having the fastest car at Michigan. Truex got to Buescher’s left side but was unable to make the pass after getting loose. It was his only true opportunity.
This battle between Chris Buescher and Martin Truex Jr. was INTENSE.
In the end, Buescher gets the W. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/Rl1vPLe8wz
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) August 7, 2023
Truex talked about his second-place finish and was asked if his respectful battle with Buescher could have gone differently in the closing laps as the two drivers raced each other cleanly.
“No, not really. I think we needed maybe a little bit longer run to wear the tires some more,” said Truex. “I feel like we were a little better. It’s hard to pass the leader on equal tires.”
The Joe Gibbs Racing driver had incredible speed but it just wasn’t enough to pass Buescher. In fact, Truex’s comments about the tire conditions were accurate. However, there are still positive takeaways from the event.
“(The car) was a rocket, The leader in clean air is really, really hard to pass,” Truex explained. “Just didn’t quite have enough. All in all, a good day.”
It was a good day for Truex as he now sits in a really good spot to win the regular season championship. The No. 19 team is peaking at the right time.