Hometown Hero: Truex Looking For Dover Sweep
The last time the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series visited Dover International Speedway, Martin Truex Jr. (No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet) was out to prove he could be “the man. ”
Just a few weeks prior to the June race at Dover, his Dale Earnhardt Inc. teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet) announced his intentions to switch teams at the end of the year. Truex knew he needed to show he could be the flagship driver for the organization, but hadn’t solidified that status with a win.
That all changed in front of his hometown fans when Truex led 216 laps en route to his first career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series victory. The win catapulted Truex into 12th place – the coveted final spot in the Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup.
And he hasn’t looked back.
Truex has remained in Chase position ever since and is one of two first-time Chase drivers. He has six top-five finishes in 14 races since then, compared with two in his first 57 career starts.
This weekend marks a big return for Truex, who also will compete in the NASCAR Busch Series, where he has two Dover victories.
“Obviously, Dover holds a lot of special memories for me, ” Truex said. “I came up through the ranks racing there and it’s also the place where I got my first NASCAR Nextel Cup victory. To top it off, I’ll be competing in the Busch Series race on Saturday in a car sponsored by my dad’s company, Sea Watch! He sponsored some of my cars when I was younger, so it will definitely be cool to have those logos on the car again. We’ll definitely be trying to “sweep” the Monster! ”
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