Based on how his No. 78 Chevrolets ran during Daytona Speedweeks in February, you can’t blame Martin Truex Jr. for feeling positive about tackling NASCAR’s other superspeedway – the 2.66-mile oval in Talladega, Ala., site of Sunday’s Geico 500 Sprint Cup Series race.
“We had so much speed with our Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevy in Daytona and feel we had the car to beat in the 500,” said Truex, who has scored eight top 10s in the first nine races of the season. “We were sitting there leading the 500 with a handful of laps to go. We ran up front throughout Speedweeks.”
During Speedweeks at Daytona International Speedway, Truex finished second in the non-point Sprint Unlimited, fifth in the Budweiser qualifying race and eighth in the Daytona 500.
“All this means is that we’ll have another fast superspeedway car in Talladega,” noted Truex, who ranks third in the driver point standings. “But staying out of trouble and being in contention at the end is what it’s really all about when we go to Talladega. It has always been a very unpredictable race.”
Labeling Talladega Superspeedway unpredictable is more than an accurate description about Truex’s past performances on NASCAR’s longest oval.
In 20 career Cup races at Talladega, Truex has taken early exits nine times – eight due to crashes and one for an engine issue. He has also recorded one top- five and six top-10 finishes.
However, in the Xfinity Series Truex appeared to have the steep-banking Talladega track mastered, winning three consecutive spring races from 2004-2006.
“I’ve been all over the place at Talladega ,” stated Truex. “However, the one place I haven’t been to in the Sprint Cup Series is Talladega’s Victory Lane, and it’s about time that we get there. I am confident that we will have a contending car on Sunday.”
After starting the season with seven consecutive top-10 finishes, Truex saw his streak snapped two weeks ago in Bristol, Tenn. when a loose wheel problem and a couple of hits relegated him to a 29th-place finish. He rebounded on Sunday with a 10th-place result in Richmond, Va.
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