Joe Gibbs Racing star Martin Truex Jr. is one of the favorites to win the upcoming Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. As he prepares to get his third victory in the fixture, the echoes of his first are still strong. He led 392 of the 400 laps in the 2016 race to grab the honors in what was one of the most dominant performances of modern NASCAR.
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Talking to the press in Charlotte after qualifying in fourth place, he looked back at the win and explained why there aren’t such overpowering performances seen on the track anymore. “I think these cars are more sensitive, for sure, to the track conditions changing. It’s really difficult to have one of these things good for 600 miles. I think that was quite the anomaly we found in 2016 with our car being just that good all night long.”
“No matter what we did, it was just right. So, hard to get hard to get a car like that especially with the Next Gen car here.” With little to no differences under the hood of the Next Gen cars, teams have been forced to look for menial ways that will get them the advantage. Under such scenarios, a drive similar to what Truex Jr. and team put up in 2016 is an unrealistic expectation in 2024.
Talking about how perfect the race was earlier this week, he said, “Certainly that 2016 Coke 600 was a special day. We started on the pole and led almost every lap, and the only laps we didn’t lead were when we were pitting. Essentially led every lap we were on the track racing. To do that in a 600-mile race, the longest of the year, to do that was as close to perfection as it gets.”
Truex Jr. feels that he helped Ty Gibbs too much in helping secure pole position
Truex Jr.’s teammate Ty Gibbs earned pole position for Sunday’s race. He joked that he had spoken with the youngster between the rounds and that he’d maybe given him too much advice that led to him being faster. “Congrats to him,” he said. “He’s doing an awesome job. Great kid, fun to be around. I’ve enjoyed our conversations over the last year or so.”
“He’s really coming into his own. He’s so good. He’s going to be an amazing driver for a long time. Really proud of him.” The upcoming race will be the first time Gibbs starts at the pole. Along with Truex Jr., he is the one other driver from Joe Gibbs Racing who hasn’t won yet in 2024.
