[autotag]Martin Truex Jr.[/autotag] started in second place at Watkins Glen International and was in line for a big points day. However, Truex found himself back in traffic, and it was hard to regain track position. The No. 19 car wasn’t as fast after Stage 1 and then was involved in a late-race caution. Truex clawed across the finish line in 20th place after expecting much better.
Now, Truex is 14 points below the playoff cut-line, and the road ahead looks difficult. Following the event, Truex talked about his day at Watkins Glen and expressed significant frustration with how the race evolved at the end.
“You get green-white-checkered at the end of the race, and you know people are just going to drive through someone,” Truex said. “We were in the wrong lane, on the short end of the stick as usual. We were in a decent spot there with our Camry, and you go through the esses, and they just plow through you and put you in the marbles. This racing is just ridiculous.”
"I'm outta here"
Martin Truex Jr is very much ready for retirement pic.twitter.com/LAE3Ed8vlh
— BrakeHard (@BrakeHardBlog) September 15, 2024
“Just crazy that all these races always come down to this. I just don’t really understand how guys can call themselves the best in the world when they just drive through everyone on restarts at the end of these races. It’s very frustrating, but it is what it is these days. I’m out of here.”
Truex sits 15th in the point standings, and the competitors around him are really good at Bristol Motor Speedway. It has been a miserable 16-race stretch for Truex, who has two top-10 finishes and five top-20 finishes over those events. The driver of the No. 19 car needs some magic at Bristol if he wants to push for a championship in his final full-time season.
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