How will Martin Truex Jr.-Pat Tryson pairing fare?
One of the compelling questions surrounding the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup season will be how Martin Truex Jr. will perform in his new ride at Michael Waltrip Racing with crew chief Pat Tryson.
Tryson, who guided Kurt Busch to two wins and a fourth-place points finish at Penske Racing this year, arguably brings a more impressive resume to the job as a crew chief than Truex does as a driver. It will be interesting to see how much success Tryson and Truex enjoy together.
As recently as two or three years ago, Truex was widely considered one of the rising stars of the sport after winning back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2005 in what is now the Nationwide Series and scoring his first Cup win at Dover in June 2007. He went on that same year to make the 10-race playoff now known as the Chase For The Sprint Cup.
Truex’s performance fell off in 2008, however, and was even worse in 2009 after Dale Earnhardt Inc. merged with Chip Ganassi Racing to form Earnhardt Ganassi Racing over the winter.
Truex’s 2009 struggles were magnified by the success of teammate Juan Pablo Montoya, who enjoyed a breakout season by qualifying for the Chase and finishing eighth in points.
Ultimately, Truex decided well before the season was over that it was time for a change, so he signed with MWR, where he’ll join David Reutimann as a teammate next season.
MWR co-owner Michael Waltrip, whom Truex is replacing in a full-time capacity, will make several starts in a third team car if sponsorship allows.
Truex will have to adjust to a new crew chief after spending his Cup career up until now with Kevin “Bono” Manion, also his pit boss through the two Nationwide championships.
Are new surroundings all that Truex needs to finally live up to the potential that many believe he still has?
We’ll find out soon enough.
