Stud No. 1 – Martin Truex Jr.
Marlon Brando “coulda’ been a contentda,'” which is fine with Martin Truex Jr., who’s now officially an “Eliminator” after a seventh-place finish in the field of 25 at the CampingWorld.com 500 at Talladega on Sunday.
Truex entered the day likely needing to finish eighth or better to secure his place in the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. He did just that, moving up from a 15th place starting position to secure a spot in the final eight driving for NASCAR’s ultimate crown.
The Denver-based Furniture Row Racing is the only single-car team to qualify for the Chase, let alone progress to the “semifinal” rounds. Credit crew chief Cole Pearn for keeping Truex’s Chevrolet running in top form, but heap the lion’s share of praise on the driver himself.
Not only has Truex steered Furniture Row Racing to the team’s best-ever finish already, he’s done so with no teammate and often having to drive from in the hole. Throughout the year he’s been set back with penalties, bad pit stops and little to no help on the track; still, Truex has driven like a man possessed and now he’s just four races away from a possible Sprint Cup title.
The points reset for the eight remaining Chase drivers as they enter the three-race Eliminator Round, so it’s anyone’s game. But with the lowest driver rating and worst average finish among the remaining contenders, NASCAR.com says Truex has the longest odds to advance to the Championship 4 at Homestead.
Good thing for Furniture Row Racing and its fans, Truex hasn’t cared much for odds this year.
