Martin Truex Jr., who is 43 years old, has been thinking about retiring from NASCAR’s Cup series for several years. Each year, he signed a one-year contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing and waited as long as possible before deciding.
At Iowa Speedway on Friday, Truex finally made his decision public – he will leave JGR’s No. 19 Toyota team at the end of this year, no matter how the rest of his season goes.
“The news has been on the Internet all week, so you guys already know and I don’t know why I’m here,” Truex nervously said at the start of his news conference. “I just want to let you all know I won’t be back full-time next year. I’m excited about the rest of the year. It means a lot to me to see Johnny Morris (owner of sponsor Bass Pro Shops) here. He’s been a big supporter of mine, and I couldn’t have achieved anything without him. It’s been amazing. It’s been quite a journey. I’m looking forward to the future. I’m not sure what that looks like yet, but I feel good about my decision.”
However, Truex emphasized that it had been an honor to work with all the crew members and team owners throughout his career.
“I won’t disappear. I’ll still be around,” Truex assured. “We’ll do some things together and have some fun.”
Truex hasn’t won a race in 2024 yet, but he is currently fifth in the Cup standings and in a good position for another playoff run.
He joined JGR at the beginning of the 2019 season. Truex has won 34 times in the Cup series, with 32 of those victories coming since 2015. In the past 10 seasons, he has finished outside of the top five in points only three times. Truex won his only Cup championship with Furniture Row Racing in 2017.
“We have always had immense respect for Martin,” said Joe Gibbs, owner of JGR. “I did everything I could to keep this going. Right now, we have two 40-year-olds performing at their best.”
Truex’s career in the Cup series has spanned nearly 20 years and 673 starts. He got his first Cup win in 2007 at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway, his home track. Truex has won major NASCAR races such as the Coca-Cola 600 twice, the Southern 500 once, and has five wins on road courses, including four at Sonoma.
He won consecutive Xfinity Series championships in 2004 and 2005 driving for Chance 2 Motorsports, then moved up to the Cup series with Dale Earnhardt Inc., which later merged with Chip Ganassi Racing. Truex also raced for Michael Waltrip Racing before joining Furniture Row in 2014. After Furniture Row closed in 2018, Truex has been with JGR.
Truex has competed in the Truck Series three times, winning once. He has five wins in what is now called ARCA East and won twice in the now-ended International Race of Champions.
Toyota, in a statement, praised Truex for his fierce competition, championships, and loyalty over the past decade. They noted he is the only driver to win Cup races in a Toyota Camry across three different race team organizations, calling it an incredible achievement. Toyota highlighted Truex’s genuine personality, consistent performance, and charitable work through the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation. They anticipate Truex will be a future Hall of Famer and will always be a cherished part of the Team Toyota family.
