When Martin Truex Jr. announced his retirement from full-time racing in the NASCAR Cup Series in a Friday news conference at Iowa Speedway, he noted that he wasn’t disappearing and that he’d still remain involved in the sport. Truex wasn’t certain about what his ambassador role with Joe Gibbs Racing or a part-time driving schedule might entail, but longtime JGR teammate Denny Hamlin stepped in later that afternoon with a turn-key option.
“I told him that I will have his Daytona 500 car ready immediately,” said Hamlin, co-owner of Toyota affiliate team 23XI Racing. “Tell me the word. 100%. I would 100% do that. … Any time that Martin gets bored and wants to run Cup, we would have a seat for him for sure.”
