Denny Hamlin on How Martin Truex Jr. Has Been “The Barometer of Performance” During His Early Days in NASCAR

Nilavro Ghosh | 18/06/2024
Martin Truex Jr. Details Reliance on Teammate Denny Hamlin Amidst Upcoming Daytona “Crapshoot”

At the end of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, Martin Truex Jr. will leave behind a legacy that will endure for several years to come. The 2017 Cup Series champion has earned the respect of everyone in the sport not just through his accomplishments, but also as how he is as a person. Denny Hamlin is one of the people he’s had an impact on and as per the driver of the #11, Truex was the measuring stick back in the day.

“He just was so good and someone that I came out of the Xfinity Series with, in 2006. We were part of the same rookie class and he was the barometer of performance. I definitely am happy for Martin and it’s certainly one of those drivers that you think that has a chance to win a championship and then peace out,” he said on a recent episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast.

Despite announcing his retirement from full-time racing, the 2017 Cup Series champion will probably stick around JGR in the role of an ambassador. Team owner Joe Gibbs said that he tried everything he could to keep the veteran but it’s time for the #19 car to have new hands on the wheel.

Truex might not be racing the entire Cup schedule anymore but that does not mean he is going to quit racing altogether. After all, a Daytona 500 win is still missing from his accolades.

Denny Hamlin will be happy to have Martin Truex Jr. at 23XI Racing

The veteran might be saying his goodbyes to full-time racing but there is a chance he can run on a part-time basis for next season. If that is the case then Hamlin has said that 23XI Racing will always have a place for the veteran race car driver. It will be interesting to see if that really does come to pass.

“I told him that I will have his Daytona 500 car ready immediately. Just tell me the word. … He’s a great driver. Why wouldn’t I? Anytime Martin gets bored and wants to run Cup, we would have a seat for him for sure,” he said as per FOX.

Despite what happened at Richmond earlier this year, the relationship between the teammates seems as solid as it has ever been.

Post Edited By: Srijan Mandal
Denny Hamlin Martin Truex Jr.

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Nilavro Ghosh

Nilavro is a NASCAR journalist at The SportsRush. His love for motorsports began at a young age with F1 and spread out to other forms of racing like NASCAR and Moto GP. After earning his post-graduate degree from the Asian College of Journalism in 2020, he has mostly worked as a motorsports journalist. Apart from covering racing, his passion lies in making music primarily as a bass player.

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