Already on the third lap of the 367-lap NASCAR Cup season finale, Martin Truex Jr. sped past William Byron on the inside for sixth place. He lost control, sped back onto the track and collided with Ryan Blaney in a horrific crash. Neither car was able to continue. Although Blaney sounded distressed over the radio, he was evaluated and released from the Infield Care Center.
Truex, the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion, immediately took the blame over the radio: “I’m an idiot,” he said. He had a comfortable 58-point lead at the start of the race, but it was nearly wiped out in that one moment.
“It was all my fault, all my doing,” Truex said after being released from the Infield Care Center. “I had a run on the 24 (Byron) and went to the inside and thought everything was going well, but then the car just lifted off and I ran into him. Obviously, that was my fault. I hate it for my guys, Bass Pro Shops, Toyota, everybody. We had a phenomenal race car and I know this is the longest race of the year — just a dumb mistake on my part.”
This is Truex’s last full-time stint as a NASCAR Cup driver, and he has announced he will retire from the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota at the end of the 2024 season. It’s his last chance to win a second Cup title, but an early exit at Darlington now puts him in serious playoff danger. He won the regular-season title last year, but now he’s winless through the first 26 races.
“Yeah, I mean, it sucks,” Truex added. “We’ve had two miserable months. Fast cars and nothing to show for it. Even tonight – tonight was my fault. I’m sorry to my team and all the guys who work so hard.”
Truex said he was “surprised” when the car spun out on fresh tires, lamenting, “(I) ruined myself, ruined (Ryan) Blaney. This is unforgivable … I know better.”
UPDATE: After Stage 2, Truex was trapped in the playoffs due to the lack of stage points earned by his rivals.
