Why Martin Truex Jr. rear-ended Jimmie Johnson after NASCAR's roval race ended
Welcome to FTW’s NASCAR Feud of the Week, where we provide a detailed breakdown of the latest absurd, funny and sometimes legitimate controversies and issues within the racing world.
This week, NASCAR had its first real taste of playoff drama. The first elimination race and third playoff event overall was Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway's crazy half-oval, half-road course -- a 17-turn, 2.28-mile "roval" on which the Cup Series had never competed. The vast majority of the race didn't feature the chaotic disaster people had anticipated, but the last few laps certainly did as the playoff field shrank from 16 drivers to 12.
First, there was a multi-car wreck with six laps remaining when Brad Keselowski "led the army off the cliff" -- but actually into a wall. And then there was the wreck on the last lap, which impacted several drivers, including Martin Truex Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Blaney.
So let's break it down.
The final laps
Going into the last lap of the Bank of America Roval 400, it seemed clear the race was coming down to two drivers: Truex and Johnson. Truex in his No. 78 Toyota had the lead and was being chased down by Johnson in the No. 48 Chevrolet. Several car lengths ahead of Blaney in third place, Truex and Johnson drove through Turns 13 and 14 -- which are normally Turns 3 and 4 on Charlotte's 1.5-mile oval track -- and their last lap was almost complete.
It was now or never if Johnson wanted to make a move on Truex, so as they came into the final obstacle on the track -- a three-turn chicane right before the finish line -- Johnson tried to pass Truex on the inside. But Johnson lost control of his car, spun out and dinged Truex on the back end of his spinning. With the 78 and 48 cars out of the way, Blaney sped by them to take the checkered flag.
Why did Johnson take this risk?
The seven-time Cup Series champion was dying for a win. He hasn't been to Victory Lane since June of 2017 and barely made the playoffs without a win this season. His first win was within reach, and as FTW recently argued, his gamble was the right and understandable move, even though it didn't work out.
Truex, on the other hand, was pretty furious with Johnson and didn't hold back criticizing him either. On pit road, Truex said:
“Desperation on his part and pretty stupid, really, if you think about it because he was locked into the next round, and now he’s out. So my guess, if there’s a silver lining, that’s it.”
Will there be retaliation?
There already was. While drivers often wait until the next race or the best opportunity to get revenge on someone who ruined their day, Truex -- who ended up in 14th -- didn't. On their cool-down lap, Truex pulled up behind Johnson and rear-ended him hard enough to spin him out.
At the next race Sunday at Dover International Speedway -- the first of three races in the Round of 12 -- Johnson could always push back and retaliate against Truex's hit, but that doesn't seem like his personality.
This is likely where this feud ends, and even though Truex was clearly the madder party at the end of the race, the way this played out is surely going to sting Johnson for a lot longer.
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