Martin Truex Jr.
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| Martin Truex, Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Birth date | June 29, 1980 |
| Birth place |  Englishtown, New Jersey
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| Car Team | 1 - Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |
| Previous Year | 2005 |
| Prev Cup Pos | 47th |
| Best Cup Pos | 47th - 2005 (NEXTEL Cup) |
| Wins | 0 |
| Top Tens | 4 |
| Poles | 0 |
| First Race | 2004 Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 (Atlanta) |
| First Win | |
| Last Win | |
| Awards | 2004 Busch Series Champion 2005 Busch Series Champion |
Martin Lee Truex, Jr. (born June 29, 1980 in Englishtown, New Jersey) is a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup driver. He currently pilots the #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS for Dale Earnhardt, Inc.. Truex won the Busch Series Championship in 2004 and 2005. 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
Truex's father, Martin Sr., was a former champion in the Busch North Series and a successful modified driver. The younger Truex began racing in the Busch North series in 2000, and won 3 races in 3 years with a family owned team.
Truex made his Busch 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 seveneenth at Dover.
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 faliure 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 Dale Jr. 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 Busch 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 Busch Series championship with a race to spare. While on his way to that championship, Truex made an appearance in Nextel Cup as a relief driver to Dale 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 Busch Series to defend his championship in 2005, winning the title for the second season in a row. He won the first NASCAR race held in Mexico, as well as defending his Busch wins at Talladega and Dover International Speedway. He took his first win at Daytona International Speedway on July 1st, 2005. At the 2005 Nextel All-Star Challenge, when a fan vote put Truex into the field for the event. Truex scored his first NEXTEL Cup Top 10 at the 2005 Coca Cola 600 when he finished 7th. He also ran the IROC series, winning his first race at Atlanta.
Truex is running full-time in the 2006 Nextel Cup season with the #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt, Inc. He has finished in the top 10 four times and is currently 19th in points. Coming off of two consecutive Busch Series championships, Truex was widely considered to be a contender in the Nextel Cup Series. However, by his own admission, Truex's 2006 season has been somewhat disappointing. He is behind fellow rookies Denny Hamlin (who is in the Chase for the Nextel Cup) and Clint Bowyer in points. However, at 19th, he still has a respectable position for a rookie driver. Furthermore, Truex has recently experienced a turnaround of sorts, finishing 6th, 11th and 5th at Dover, Kansas and Talladega, respectively.
In 2006, he has also made six starts in the Busch Series for Earnhardt, winning at Talladega.