Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. announced at Iowa Speedway on Friday that he is retiring from full-time driving at the end of the 2024 season.
“I will not be back full-time next year,” Truex said.
Truex, who at 43 is the oldest active Cup Series driver, became a full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver in 2006, but he bloomed later in his career with a run of 23 wins between 2016 and 2019 and the 2017 championship.
“It’s been incredible, it’s been a helluva ride I’m excited about the future and not really sure what that looks like yet,” Truex Said.
“To able to win a championship was something I always dreamed of and to be able to get that done was amazing and I just feel really lucky to be surrounded by a lot of great people over the years.”
RICHARD PETTY EXPLAINS HOW HE BECAME ‘THE KING’
The New Jersey native has won 34 races to date and also claimed the 2017 and 2023 regular season titles. His one crown jewel win came at the 2016 Southern 500.
He said his decision had nothing to do with his recent performance and that he’s been thinking about it for the past few years and that it just felt like the right time now.
“Just waiting for that feeling in my mind to be positive,” he said.
Truex also has 13 wins in the Xfinity Series and won back to back titles in 2004 and 2005, when it was known as the Busch Series.
Truex will remain an ambassador for Joe Gibbs Racing and left the door open to future one-off race entries with the team.
“I won’t be gone, I’ll be around still,” he said.
He also said he’d consider another shot at the Daytona 500 win that eluded him during his career.
