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NASCAR CUP SERIES: FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400September 12, 2020Martin Truex, Jr.Richmond, Virginia THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by Martin Truex Jr., our second‑place finisher in the No.19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Martin, can you talk us through your run out there and how you feel getting the second‑place finish at Richmond? MARTIN TRUEX JR.: Yeah, it feels good. You know, obviously wanted to win and going for three in a row here would have been pretty cool to be able to make that happen, but just didn't quite have what we needed tonight. Bass Pro Toyota was good, just not quite good enough. I thought early in the race, I thought, man, this is going to be a struggle. We started 14th or whatever, and took a little bit of work to get towards the front and really was never pleased with the way the car was driving. Just continued to battle and work on it all night and fight for every position and ended up coming away with some good stage points and a good finish. Typically when you're off and your car feels and does things you don't want it to do and you can run second, it says a lot about your team. Proud of everyone, and we'll keep digging. Q. What did you think of the tire and the package setup, especially considering we'll be running this tire at Phoenix? MARTIN TRUEX JR.: Yeah, I mean, I obviously was a fan of the old tire here better, but with that being said, I don't know that it really relates to Phoenix a whole lot as far as what it's going to feel like there. I feel like the tracks are so different, it's hard to say. But for sure I think with this tire, obviously the 2 has got it figured out. I guess he won Loudon with it and then here. They've been strong on this tire and this package. We've got a little work to do, but overall I felt like it was‑‑ it didn't lay really any rubber down on the racetrack like we've seen here in the past, and I think that changed things up quite a bit, especially for us, obviously. Again, I was surprised with how bad my car felt that I was still able to run second. I don't know, I liked the old one better, but I guess it depends on who you ask. Q. Obviously you didn't get the win I'm sure you wanted, but why are you so good at Richmond? MARTIN TRUEX JR.: Oh, I don't know. I mean, I think good team, good cars. We've been able to work on the same things as a group for quite a while, and that's really what it takes, I think, at the short tracks. They're so unique, and it takes a certain kind of approach, driving style and setup all to go together, mesh together, and I think for us we've been able to work on that for years together and continue to tweak on it, and that's kind of where we're at there. It's one of those things I feel like once you find it you can keep it for a while until so many things change you have to change up what you're doing and how you approach it. But so far it's been pretty good here lately. Q. You guys obviously a lot of top‑3 finishes, top‑5 finishes this season. Only one win to this point. What do you think it's going to take to reach that next level as you start to get down toward Phoenix? MARTIN TRUEX JR.: Yeah, I think we're there, really. It just depends on the week. I think you look at Darlington last weekend, and we had a dominant car and just got in a situation where just something happened that we wish wouldn't. But obviously had the car to beat. I mean, I think we're there. I think we've just got to keep doing what we're doing. Q. You're 38 points above the cutoff, so do you have no worries during this week, or when you're never not clinched is there always the dread of something bad happening in the back of your mind? MARTIN TRUEX JR.: Yeah, I don't know. I don't really worry about it too much. We're just going to go there and race and see what happens. I mean, you can't‑‑ there's no sense in making yourself crazy all week when it has no bearing on the outcome. We're going to work hard and try to be better at Bristol. It's not been the best place for us, but I'm confident the guys will do a good job, and we'll go there and run the best we can and see what happens. Q. Have you seen any difference in the 3 this week, either just kind of‑‑ obviously they're running better, but I don't know if you guys as drivers, is there something that you're seeing that car is doing that it wasn't able to do earlier in the year? MARTIN TRUEX JR.: It's got speed, yeah, so I don't know‑‑ honestly it's really hard to tell why. You don't know what's under the car suspension‑wise and shocks and springs and all those things that matter. Obviously they've taken a big step forward, so that's cool to see. But yeah, it's really hard to tell. You can't see these things from the outside. THE MODERATOR: Martin, thank you so much for taking the time to join us. Congratulations and we'll see you at Bristol. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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