Martin Truex Jr. makes statement

Martin Truex Jr. may have but one victory to his credit entering the Chase this year, but he certainly announced his presence as a contender at Chicagoland Speedway, the venue for Sunday’s MyAFibRisk.com 400.

In Saturday’s first practice session, Truex topped the speed chart at 183.312 mph, nearly a full mile-an-hour faster than second-place Denny Hamlin at 182.389 mph. In cooler temperatures in the afternoon, Truex ran 184.849 mph and was the only driver to top the 184-mph mark.

Truex, who will start from the fourth position on Sunday, has no top fives in nine starts at the 1.5-mile track, but from all indications so far, that’s likely to change in the first Chase race.

“We’ve got a great race team here, we’ve got great race cars, and we’ve got a lot of confidence,” said the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet.