Even though he was able to overcome a pit road penalty to finish ninth in Saturday’s LifeLock.com 400, Martin Truex Jr. could not help but think about what might have been.
“I told the guys that I owe them one,” Truex said. “I misunderstood what Bono (crew chief Kevin Manion) wanted me to do on that one caution. I followed Carl (Edwards) down pit road and I should’ve stayed out. Then I got caught for speeding and had to come back down pit road.
“We gave up a lot of spots there and just had to work all night to get them back.”
Truex was running second behind Edwards when the caution came out on lap 111 of the 267-lap event. The Dale Earnhardt Inc. driver mistakenly followed Edwards down pit road and the Bass Pro Shops/Cub Cadet team jumped into action, putting two right side tires on the car. Unfortunately, NASCAR officials said Truex was speeding on his exit and the Mayetta N. J. native had to come back down pit road. The team used the opportunity to put two new left side tires on the No. 1 Chevrolet.
“Bono wanted me to stay out regardless of what Carl did, but I saw him come down pit road and I followed him without really thinking about it. The speeding penalty made it worse, but we hung tough.”
Truex re-entered the race in 27th, but managed to fight his way back for his sixth top-10 finish of the season.
“All of these races seem to come down to track position and it’s hard to get those spots back,” continued Truex. “I’ve just got to thank the guys for giving me such a great car. To be able to come back into the top 10 from where we were shows you how strong the car was.”
Truex is 17th in 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup driver points, 233 points out of 12th.
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