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Martin Truex Jr. cruised to victory at the New Hampshire Motorspeedway, taking his third victory of the season, on July 17, 2023. At the victory lane, instead of a regular winners trophy, Truex was given a 22-pound live lobster as a winner's trophy.
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This is not the first time that NASCAR winners have gotten a unique trophy. A surfboard is given out by Fontana, a guitar in Nashville, and a grandfather clock in Martinsville.
Only in New Hampshire, a full-sized, living creature is awarded as a trophy.
Where does the lobster come from?
It's not some regular lobster you find at your local stores. It's a ginormous lobster and its estimated weight varies from 22-26 pounds.
The story of the giant lobster begins in Canada. Live lobsters are caught in Concord during the race weekends and distributed to local restaurants like Makris Lobster and Steak House. The biggest and largest lobster of all is chosen and given to the race winner.
But what happens to the Lobster after the winning celebration?
It is returned to the respective restaurant where the lobster meat is removed and sent to the team. The body, meanwhile is given to a taxidermist, who preserves the lobster shell and then sends it to the winner's home.
Not all winners take the lobster home, though. Kurt Busch donated his live lobster to the New England aquarium but sadly the lobster didn't make it and died the same day.
Martin Truex Jr. hasn't decided on his retirement plans says Joe Gibbs
Martin Truex Jr. says one of the reasons he hasn't decided on his future with NASCAR ahead of the next season is his difficulty in making big decisions.
With a victory in New Hampshire on Monday, Martin Truex Jr. now has three wins with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2023. He placed himself second on the Cup Series points board, Truex has a big decision to make about his future in NASCAR.
He has to decide if he wants to continue to race with Joe Gibbs or to just retire or race with a different team. It's all up to him now.
"He tells me the same thing every year, that 'I'm right in the middle of trying to make this decision," Joe Gibbs said during an interview in New Hampshire (via Autosport).
But Martin Truex Jr. stated that he cannot make a firm stand on what he wants to do next year. He stated that he'll soon reach a firm decision and make an announcement.
