Former NASCAR Cup Champion Martin Truex Jr. to Retire After 2024 Season, per Report

May 18, 2024; North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Martin Truex Jr. (19) during qualifying at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
May 18, 2024; North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Martin Truex Jr. (19) during qualifying at North Wilkesboro Speedway. / Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

NASCAR veteran Martin Truex Jr. appears set to call it a career.

Truex is expected to announce Friday that he will retire at the end of the 2024 season, according to a Thursday afternoon report from Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic.

"Truex is expected to make the decision public at a news conference Friday afternoon at Iowa Speedway, the site of Sunday’s race," Bianchi wrote.

If confirmed, Truex's exit will bring a fruitful 21-year career in NASCAR's top division to a conclusion. The Mayetta, N.J. native achieved his greatest heights in 2017, when he won his only NASCAR Cup Series title.

All told, Truex won 34 races in the Cup Series—tied for the 25th-most ever—and 13 in the Xfinity Series. He even won in the Craftsman Truck Series in 2021.

In addition to his '17 breakthrough, he finished as the Cup Series' runner-up in 2018, 2019 and '21.

At 43, Truex is now the Cup Series's oldest regular. His best finish so far this season is a second-place showing at the Food City 500 in Bristol, Tenn. on St. Patrick's Day.


Published
Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .