None of the first-round races in this season’s Cup Series postseason is at an intermediate track. One is at a superspeedway (Atlanta), one is at a road course (Watkins Glen), and the final one is at a short track (Bristol).
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All of these three can be considered wildcard races and Martin Truex Jr. agrees 100% with that. This is the veteran’s final season as a full-time Cup Series driver and he believes that the sport has become more about the entertainment than racing these days.
The playoff format has long been criticized for impeding the integrity of the competition. A driver could run well all season long but a couple of bad playoff races and you could be staring at an early playoff exit.
That could happen in the first round itself with three such unpredictable and vastly different tracks. But that is just the way it is. The best thing drivers can do is just do the best that they can and hope nothing goes wrong. It’s not exactly the best mindset to have if you’re gunning for a championship win.
“It’s kind of the way it is these days. It’s all about the excitement, it’s all about the show and a lot of guys could be in a really bad spot leaving race one (Atlanta) of the playoffs. It’s always been that way but certainly a place like Atlanta has more uncertainty than a regular track,” he told the media.
Very happy to see my fishing buddy and that he hasn’t lost his sense of humor. @RyanJNewman pic.twitter.com/lK5nEa924K
— Martin Truex Jr. (@MartinTruex_Jr) February 19, 2020
Truex has had plenty of top-five and top-10 finishes at the Atlanta Motor Speedway but has never converted any of them into a win so far in his storied career. What makes his situation further unpredictable is that he does not have any playoff points going into the last 16. The veteran has no choice but to run well right from the get-go if he is to have any chance of competing for the title this year.
It’s not just Atlanta he’s worried about. The other two first-round races, Watkins Glen and Bristol, are also as unpredictable as it gets. It’s tough to pass in the Next-Gen car on road courses and short tracks so qualifying will be crucial.
Truex believes that at a place like the Glen, a driver could have the fastest car but would not be able to finish high up if he doesn’t have the best possible strategy and starting position. Bristol is just as unpredictable which is a characteristic of short-track racing. Currently sitting 58 points clear of the cutoff line, one bad weekend could take the #19 crew out of the equation.
It remains to be seen how well they perform during the upcoming Darlington event this Sunday, laying groundwork for what could be a slugfest in the first round of the postseason itself.
