Truex Jr. grabs the drought at Phoenix Raceway as Arizona riders battle it out at Instacart 500

Martin Truex Jr. had an illustrious career in the NASCAR Cup Series that was filled with victories and the 2017 Cup championship.

Despite 27 career victories at NASCAR’s highest level, Truex had never broken through at the Phoenix Raceway. And for most of the Instacart 500 on Sunday’s three-and-a-half mile route, it seemed like it would come off empty again in Phoenix.

Glendale’s Michael McDowell was disappointed with his Instacart 500 foray at Phoenix Raceway. (File Photo by Stephanie Bates / Cronkite News)

But when Joey Logano crossed well ahead of the pack on lap 283 of 312, Ross Chastain came across Kyle Busch’s No. 18 car and a warning flag came out. During the subsequent restart, Truex raced past Logano, who drove 143 laps on Sunday and came around him in Turn 1.

Truex dominated the remainder of the race, breaking two droughts with one win. He drove 0:30 in Phoenix and finished a streak of 29 races without a Cup series win, which was dated until 2020 in Martinsville.

“It feels great,” said Truex. “Honestly, it feels like a really great achievement to be able to do this … to be able to overcome the things we’ve done, just because a team never gives up, keep working hard on things.

“Nobody has lost their cool. I screwed it up and hit the wall early on, damaging the right stern. Nobody screamed and screamed or lost their minds. Just a good team effort. … Very special. It’s always nice to cross a new title off the list. “

Truex, who drives for the Joe Gibbs Racing Team, saw him finish two teammates in the top 10 on Sunday. Denny Hamlin led 33 laps and finished third, while Christopher Bell finished ninth.

Hamlin praised his teammates for the win, saying his third place finish on the short distance gave him confidence for the remaining races of the 2021 season.

“The 19 (Truex Jr.) had a good car,” said Hamlin. “I think their short-haul program makes them one of our best short-haul teams at JGR. It was encouraging to me that we were in the top five all day.

“We weren’t good on the short distances last year. I think in 2019 our worst result in the 11 (Hamlin) over a short distance was fourth, maybe fifth. We all had top fives on every short stretch. Last year, if we got sixth or seventh place, it was probably a decent day for us. Hopefully this is a sign that we have been working on the right things and are going in the right direction. But good for him to win. I wish it was me “

Truex is the fifth NASCAR driver to have won a race in the five races so far this season. The parity of 2021 is in stark contrast to 2020, when Kevin Harvick and Hamlin together won 17 of the 36 races in the Cup Series.

The win also qualifies Truex for the playoffs of the Cup series, which end with the championship race at Phoenix Raceway on November 7th.

“Nobody remembers who came in second or third,” said James Small, Truex crew chief. “We had really strong races last year and we just didn’t run them. Wins are what matters in this sport. It’s definitely a relief to get one so early (and) make sure we’re locked in the (playoffs). “

The Arizona riders missed their chance to finish in the top 10

Arizona Natives Alex Bowman and Michael McDowell didn’t do as well as they’d hoped for the Instacart 500 on Sunday.

After three top 10 finishes in the first three races of the season, including a career-defining Daytona 500 win, McDowell’s poor performance has since put him 11th in the NASCAR Cup Series rankings. McDowell started in the field on day 16 and could not climb the rankings. Finally he finished in a disappointing 23rd place.

Bowman fared much better despite a close call. Bowman’s foray into Avondale seemed brief when he pulled out of Turn 1 on lap 47 and raised the warning flag.

Bowman’s instincts prevented any serious harm and he raced on. Bowman shrugged off the near-miss, fought his way through the field and eventually moved up to 13th place.

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