Truex car fails post-race Inspection

April 14, 2013 Greg Engle Main Page, NASCAR News Top Story, Top Stories 0

FORT WORTH, TX - APRIL 13: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, races Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, and Jeff Gordon, driver of the #24 Cromax Pro Chevrolet, during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 13, 2013 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX - APRIL 13: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, races Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, and Jeff Gordon, driver of the #24 Cromax Pro Chevrolet, during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 13, 2013 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
FORT WORTH, TX – APRIL 13: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota, races Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Interstate Batteries Toyota, and Jeff Gordon, driver of the #24 Cromax Pro Chevrolet, during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 13, 2013 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

FORT WORTH, Tex.–Martin Truex Jr. made Kyle Busch battle for his first place finish Saturday night at Texas Motor Speedway.  He led Busch in the closing stages, until Busch took advantage of the races final caution and a lightning fast pit stop to regain first place.

Truex was disappointed as his winless streak stretching back 209 races continues. There was more bad news for Truex and his Michael Waltrip Racing crew after the race as the No. 56 Toyota did not pass NASCAR’s post-race inspection. Officials said the car was too low in the front and as a result Truex may be facing a penalty. As an indicator of what Truex may be facing, Kyle Busch got slammed back in 2011, with a six-point penalty and a $25,000 fine for being too low.

That could be hard to swallow for Truex after he was already overcome with disappointment over his second place finish when he was so close to being first.

“Yeah, Shoulda, coulda, woulda – it happened to us a few times last year too. I’m just disappointed. The race was over when we got beat out of the pits, “said Truex Jr.

“When they say second sucks – second sure sucked tonight. “

Truex led 142 of 334 laps Saturday night. He is 16th in the series standing and is 37 points outside the top 10. If he gets a six-point penalty, he will drop down to 19th.

Greg Engle
Latest posts by Greg Engle (see all)

Subscribe to our daily NASCAR headlines, CLICK HERE!

About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.