For NASCAR driver Martin Truex, Jr., the feeling of victory is an indescribable rush. The Team Toyota driver won his first NASCAR Cup Series Championship in 2017.

“You can’t even explain the feeling — it’s overwhelming,” Truex, Jr. said. “Winning anything is the best thing and the worst thing, because once you do it, you won’t settle for anything less.”

For the 44-year-old, racing is more than a profession; it’s deeply rooted in his upbringing. The son of racer Martin Truex, Sr., Martin, Jr. grew up racing alongside his father and falling in love with the sport as a kid. Now, in his 13^th season behind the wheel of a Toyota, Truex, Jr. is in the driver’s seat of the No. 19 Toyota Camry XSE.

About halfway through the 2023 NASCAR season, Toyota celebrated a monumental achievement in the racing world, reaching an impressive all-time 600 national series wins. Truex, Jr. is among the notable contributors to this milestone with 33 wins to his name at that time, earning the third highest first-place finishes on Team Toyota behind Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin.

“No matter what you did last year, it doesn’t really matter,” he said. “It’s all about this season.”

This season will be one for the books as Truex, Jr. is set to retire from full-time NASCAR Cup Series racing at the end of the 2024 season.

Building the Blacked-Out Camry
Die-hard fans may recall that Truex, Jr. custom-made a version of the 2018 Camry in partnership with Toyota’s Motorsports garage. The move was part of his desire to design a legacy off the track.

Built as an homage to his own racecar, the Camry debuted at Toyota’s 2017 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show display.

“The challenge was taking an already sporty Camry and giving it a race feel with NASCAR inspiration,” Truex, Jr. said. “I wanted this car to strike a little bit of fear in drivers who see it in their rearview mirror getting ready to pass them.”

While keeping all the comforts of the 2018 model year, the Truex Jr. Camry had a more aggressive look and feel, reminiscent of the vehicle the champion racer drives professionally. The dedicated team at Misfit Industries was tasked with perfecting the details of the finishing work — testing six shades behind the scenes before deciding on the perfect black. But the transformation wasn’t confined to the exterior: the interior was equally blacked out.

Marty Schwerter, who is the Toyota Motorsports garage team manager, spoke at the time about the motivation behind many of the decisions his crew made for the custom build.

“Martin told us a lot of his career success is because of the teammates who surround him, so of course we jumped at the chance to be part of that team,” said Schwerter.

A Team Effort
At the heart of Truex, Jr.’s career is a deep appreciation for his team. He has an unwavering commitment to give credit where it’s due, constantly attributing his successes to the collective effort of his dedicated team.

“A total team effort,” he said. “Everybody works really, really hard.”

This ethos extends beyond his immediate racing team to include the crew at Toyota Racing Development (TRD). According to the driver, the fact that he’s secured all but two of his wins in a TRD power-equipped Toyota is proof enough.

“I think if you look at my career and you look at the successful parts of it, TRD is all over that,” Truex, Jr. said, “including the championship. Obviously one of the biggest accomplishments you could ever have and something I’ve worked for since I was a kid wanting to be a NASCAR driver.”

As Truex, Jr. continues to leave his mark on the NASCAR world, his enduring commitment to teamwork and recognition of the invaluable role played by his various teams serve as a testament to the power of collaboration, dedication, and passion in achieving greatness on the track.