Martin Truex Jr.’s crew chief explains why Joe Gibbs Racing’s second half of 2024 lacked wins despite strong performance

Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) driver Martin Truex Jr. started the 2024 season on high note with consistent results but lost momentum in the later half of the season and ended his final full-time season without reaching victory lane. His crew chief James Small has shed light on the challenges JGR faced, lacking wins during the second half of the season despite showing strong performances.

In an interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Martin Truex's crew chief James Small said that not winning in the second half of the season was more circumstantial than anything else.

Small pointed out specific races where JGR drivers Denny Hamlin and Truex Jr. had the speed and positioning to win, like Nashville, New Hampshire and Las Vegas, but external factors like fuel issues, poor pit stops or unfortunate race sequences hampered their success.

Here's what the #19 JGR Toyota crew chief said:

“I definitely think a lot of it was circumstances, you just look at like Nashville, obviously like straight up the New Hampshire; the #11 and even the #19 were right there at the end, and we both ran out of fuel. The #11 was going to win the race, no doubt, and then even as soon as Vegas like Bell had the dominating car that day, and it's one of those races with circumstance.

“Indy was another one, the #11 was incredibly quick, we had a good day going as well; they got caught up in a bad sequence, Pocono, all these races, Darlington, like the cars across, any of our four cars have always been up front and have speed, and it's just, it's just things that aren't going right or bad restarts and bad things happen on pit road.”

None of the four Joe Gibbs Racing drivers could secure a championship 4 berth at Phoenix Raceway. Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin were the only two JGR drivers who reached victory lane and advance to the Round of 8, but their lack of wins there derailed their championship run.

Joe Gibbs Racing have won six races in 2024, with all six coming in the first 18 of 36 races.

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Martin Truex Jr.’s crew chief reflects on areas for improvement for 2025 season

The season hasn't been the best for Joe Gibbs Racing in terms of performances on the speedway. James Small admitted that there are areas where they need to improve, particularly at speedway.

Small, who will work with Chase Briscoe, the replacement of retired Martin Truex Jr. next season, said that they are reviewing their season to address the weaknesses and aiming to begin the 2025 season more prepared and competitive across all track types.

In the aforementioned interview, speaking about improvements, Martin Truex's crew chief said:

“Definitely things we need to work on in terms of speedway stuff; I feel like, we're a little weak there, which just depends on how you devote your resources and what you think are the most important races… There's definitely things we can do to get better and we're looking through all that and hopefully start the year, you know, ready to go.”

Martin Truex ended his finall full-time season in 10th position in the championship, with five top-five and 11 top-10 finishes.