NASCAR: Martin Truex Jr. named Colorado Sportsperson of the Year
By Asher Fair
Martin Truex Jr., the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion, was named the Colorado Sportsperson of the Year by Mile High Sports.
Martin Truex Jr., 37, was named the 2017 Colorado Sportsperson of the Year by Mile High Sports. Truex Jr. won his first career NASCAR Cup Series championship in the 2017 season after a career-best season in his 12th full season in the sport.
In the 2017 season, Truex Jr. drove in all 36 races on the schedule. He finished in the top 10 a career-high 26 times, the top 5 a career-high 19 times, and he won a career-high eight races.
Truex Jr.’s previous career-high top 10 finish total was 22, which he recorded in the 2016 season. His previous career-high top 5 total was just eight, which he recorded in both the 2015 and 2016 seasons. His previous career-high win total was four, which he recorded in the 2016 season.
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In the 2017 season, Truex Jr. more than doubled his career Cup Series win total. In fact, he has now doubled his career win total in two straight seasons. In the 2016 season, he won four races to take his career win total from three to seven. This past season, he won eight races to take his career win total from seven to 15.
Prior to the 2017 season, Truex Jr. had only finished in the top 10 in the championship standings once in 11 full seasons. He did so in the 2015 season when he finished in 4th place.
Here is what the 2017 Cup Series champion had to say in response to being named the Colorado Sportsperson of the Year by Mile High Sports, according to NASCAR.com.
"“Individual honors in a team sport are a result of the people you are surrounded with. I feel blessed to be part of an outstanding organization led by our owner Barney Visser, team president Joe Garone and crew chief Cole Pearn.“These honors represent the hard work by the talented individuals at our Denver race shop. I want to thank Mile High Sports and all our passionate Colorado race fans for the support they have given our team through the years.”"
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By being named the Colorado Sportsperson of the Year by Mile High Sports, Martin Truex Jr. joins the likes of great athletes such as Chauncey Billups, John Elway, Missy Franklin and Peyton Manning. It is great to see a NASCAR driver being awarded this honor after an incredible 2017 season.