Martin Truex Jr. Bristol Preview

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Martin Truex Jr. and the NAPA Know How team visit Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday night for one of the most exciting races of the NASCAR Sprint Cup season. The No. 56 Michael Waltrip Racing team’s string of recent success includes scoring the 12th-most points in the last five races including two top-10 finishes in the last three events. Truex said nearly every driver and all fans enjoy races on the half-mile track that celebrates its 100th Sprint Cup race this weekend.

 

Truex is busy off the track as well this week. Today, he launched the Martin Truex Jr. Authentics website www.mtjauthentics.com for NASCAR fans and outdoor enthusiasts. The website includes hunting and fishing tips from Truex plus recommended products.

 

QUOTES

 

TRUEX ON RACING AT BRISTOL: “Bristol is one of those tracks that I think all of us like no matter where we grew up racing. The NAPA team had a good run there back in March and in 2004, I won my first Nationwide Series race there. I’ve always enjoyed racing there especially after they redid the concrete and the banking. It’s a lot of fun to race on because you can go two, three wide. You can also run the top groove now so it’s a lot more fun to drive. I just enjoy having options. If your car isn’t working right on the bottom, you can try going high and maybe pick up three or four-tenths a lap. Who wouldn’t like to be able to do that? It also creates great racing for the fans.”

 

CREW CHIEF PAT TRYSON ON BRISTOL: “Bristol is a little harder on crew chiefs because we don’t have as much time to think about things. My job is to watch and base decisions on what is right for the team and what most teams will do. Lately, Bristol has seen a lot of long, green-flag runs. It has changed a lot as far as how the race is run. Our NAPA team has been really running well starting in May. We should have more points, but there were some races where something happened that was out of our control. Our goal for this race is to win, obviously, or at least leave with another top-10.”

 

ON MTJAUTHENTICS.COM: "I'm really excited to create a place for people like me who enjoy NASCAR, hunting and fishing. It should be a good place to interact online. I'll be visiting the site a lot to upload my personal hunting and fishing pictures, give fans a few tips and feature products that work for me."

NOTES OF INTEREST

 

Saturday night is Truex’s 177th Sprint Cup Series race and 10th at the 0.533-mile track. His best start (March 16, 2008) and finish (Aug. 25, 2007) is 11th. During his Cup career, Truex has earned three top–15 and five top-25 finishes at BMS. His average start is 19th and his average finish is 24th. In Nationwide Series competition, Truex has one victory, one top-five and four top-10 finishes.

Crew Chief Pat Tryson called the winning race at Bristol back on March 25, 2001 with driver Elliott Sadler.

Sign up for the NAPA Belden Spark Plug Wire “Take the Lead” Sweepstakes. Ten lucky winners will be chosen to ride with Truex at Charlotte Motor Speedway. They’ll also get to drive a few laps with the Richard Petty Driving Experience and take a behind-the-scenes tour of Michael Waltrip Racing. To enter, visit NAPABELDEN.com or NAPAonline.com now through Sept. 20.

 

Don’t be left out. Over 10,000 fans have taken advantage of NAPA’s free Track Pass offer. To listen in to Truex’s in-car audio, register at www.nascar.com/napatruexscanner or www.NAPAonline.com. The offer is good through the remainder of the season.