Defending Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr. scored his second win of the year, beating Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick to the finish line at Pocono Raceway. Heading into the Pocono 400, all eyes (and bets) were on Busch and Harvick for the win. The pair had won nine of 13 Cup Series races this season, so there was no reason to bet against them. What no one expected was that the runner-up, Kyle Larson, and Furniture Row Racing driver Truex Jr. would emerge as top contenders in the 14th race of the season.
In 13 Cup starts this year, Truex Jr. amassed eight top-five and eight top-10 finishes. He also started on the pole four times and made it to Victory Lane once before securing his win at Pocono. Truex Jr. dominated stage wins last season. He captured his third stage win for this season at Pocono Raceway by barely beating Harvick in Stage 1. Harvick, who led 89 laps and finished in third, won Stage 2 for a series-leading seventh stage wins of the season. Truex Jr. led the second most laps of the Pocono 400 with 31. Yet, he was the runner-up for the last two Cup Series races behind Busch and Harvick.
When asked whether he should be considered part of the “Big Three” now in NASCAR, referring to Harvick, Busch, and himself, Truex Jr. replied, “If you want to.” He also added, “I think if you look at our season as a whole, you look at the amount of spots we’ve lost on pit road, we had four weekends where obviously we finished really bad, poorly. We had two blown tires and got caught in two wrecks four weeks in a row, which really hurt us and set us back momentum-wise. But, more so points wise besides them four races, we’ve been top five all but once. So, if you look at that, it’s pretty good and the things that we’ve had to battle back from to keep finishing in the top five it’s hard to do.”
The Monster Energy NASCAR Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway Results
(Position Finished, Driver, Manufacturer, Laps Completed, Laps Led)
1. Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 160, led 31
2. Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 160, 0
3. Kyle Busch, Toyota, 160, led 13
4. Kevin Harvick, Ford, 160, led 89
5. Brad Keselowski, Ford, 160, led 10
6. Ryan Blaney, Ford, 160, led 11
7. Aric Almirola, Ford, 160, 0
8. Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 160, led 2
9. Joey Logano, Ford, 160, 0
10. Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 160, 0
11. Paul Menard, Ford, 160, 0
12. Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 160, 0
13. Matt Kenseth, Ford, 160, 0
14. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 160, 0
15. Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 160, 0
16. David Ragan, Ford, 160, 0
17. Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 160, 0
18. William Byron, Chevrolet, 160, 0
19. Kurt Busch, Ford, 160, 0
20. Clint Bowyer, Ford, 160, 0
21. Michael McDowell, Ford, 160, 0
22. AJ. Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 160, 0
23. Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 160, 0
24. Daniel Suarez, Toyota, 160, 0
25. Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 160, 0
26. Cole Custer, Ford, 160, 0
27. Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 160, 0
28. Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 159, 0
29. Erik Jones, Toyota, 159, 0
30. Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 158, 0
31. Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 157, 0
32. J.J. Yeley, Chevrolet, 157, 0
33. Gray Gaulding, Toyota, 157, 0
34. Derrike Cope, Chevrolet, 152, 0
35. Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 146, Accident, 0
36. Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 120, Transmission, 0
37. Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 113, Brakes, 0
38. Bubba Wallace, Chevrolet, 108, Engine, led 4
From a Raceway to a Speedway
The next stop on the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series is the two-mile Michigan International Speedway, the fastest track on the NASCAR schedule. Average speeds aren’t that fast at Pocono Raceway due to the design of The Tricky Triangle, however, fans can expect to witness some exhilarating racing at Michigan. The FireKeepers Casino 400 (200 laps, 400 miles) will start at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 10, at Michigan International Speedway.