DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Report by Race Chaser Online Managing Editor Jacob Seelman — Patrick Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR photo —
Martin Truex Jr. will have a long way to come his 150-mile Can-Am Duel race Thursday night, after being unable to post a time in Coors Light Pole Qualifying on Sunday at Daytona International Speedway.
The Mayetta, N.J. native — who advanced to the Championship 4 Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup last November and finished a career-high fourth in points — was pulled from the qualifying line by NASCAR officials, who cited an issue with the right-hand roof flap on the No. 78 Bass Pro Shops/Furniture Row Racing Toyota as the cause for concern.
Crew members rolled Truex’s machine back to the garage area, where he was put on the five-minute warning clock, but it mattered not — his Sunday was done before it began, leaving crew chief Cole Pearn to shake his head at the situation.
“I guess it was an issue with the right-side roof flap not sitting as low as it needs to. They (NASCAR) didn’t like the way it was landing when it dropped back down,” said Pearn, a Canadian national who is starting his second full season with Truex this year. “I don’t know. [The flap] was like that the whole way down pit road, so I don’t know what the problem was. It could have been easily fixed. We were down there at the end, and I don’t know why we had to run all the way back down here. There was no way we were going to make it all the way back out there in time. It’s whatever.”
“We will just roll on and see what they decide to do,” he added, referencing the possibility of NASCAR handing down fines or points penalties due to the infraction. “It’s just too bad, I thought we had a really good car with some good speed, so it would have been nice to see what we could have run at least. Either way, we will move on and hopefully have a good rest of Speedweeks here.”
As a result of the issues, Truex will start last in Can-Am Duel No. 2 and have to work his way forward to improve his starting spot for next Sunday’s Daytona 500. FRR carries one of 36 NASCAR Charters for the 78 team, meaning that regardless of the outcome of the Duels, Truex will race in the 58th annual Daytona 500.
“There was something they didn’t like that they missed in there apparently,” Truex added, having been unaware of the problem before he exited his Toyota. “It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.”
Officials from NASCAR later released a statement detailing the sanctioning body’s side of the story.
“Prior to making a qualifying attempt for the Daytona 500, NASCAR officials on pit road determined that a roof flap on the No. 78 was not in compliance with prescribed specifications,” the statement read. “The team was unable to correct the violation within the allotted five minutes per the NASCAR Rule Book, and forfeited their opportunity to make a qualifying attempt. The No. 78 will start at the rear of the field in their qualifying race.”
The next on-track action for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars will be on Wednesday, when teams return to the track for the third round of Daytona 500 practice at 5 p.m. ET (FS1).
About the Writer
Jacob Seelman is the Managing Editor of Race Chaser Online and creator of the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network. Seelman grew up in the sport, watching his grandparents co-own the RaDiUs Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team in the 1990s.
The 22-year-old is currently studying Broadcast Journalism at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., and is also serving as the full-time tour announcer for both the United Sprint Car Series and the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series.
Email Jacob at: speed77radio@gmail.com
Follow on Twitter: @Speed77Radio or @JacobSeelman77
Email Race Chaser Online: news@racechaseronline.com
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