DARLINGTON, S.C. (AP) — Martin Truex Jr. left his NASCAR playoff fate in other drivers' hands after sliding into defending Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney on the third lap at the Southern 500 on Sunday.
Truex, the 2017 champion, came in 58 points ahead of the cutoff line to reach the playoffs, which start next week at Atlanta. He said Saturday that he felt good about his position at 14th on the playoff grid entering the weekend.
The wreck left the Joe Gibbs Racing driver in his last full season spending the rest of the 500-mile race hoping others behind him wouldn't do enough on the track to knock him out.
“It was all my fault, all my doing,” Truex said outside the infield care center.
Truex said he had a run on William Byron's No. 24 when the car got away from him.
“I thought everything was going fine and I ran into him. Obviously, that was on me,” he said.
Blaney, like Truex, was taken to the care center. The Team Penske driver said he was hurting at first, but felt like he'd be OK going forward as he prepares to defend his series title beginning next week in Atlanta.
“I saw Martin get loose, and I thought he was going to spin to the bottom, so I kind of gassed up to get around him, but it was just terrible timing,” Blaney said. “He overcorrected, and we were just right there.”
Truex's JGR teammate Ty Gibbs entered without a win in 15th, while Chris Buescher of Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing was on the playoff bubble in 16th.
Bubba Wallace, who started from the pole, was the first man out of playoff position, 21 points behind Buescher when the race began.
Truex said it would be a long night of waiting after struggling on the track the past several races.
“It sucks. We just had a miserable two months,” he said. “Tonight was on me, sorry to my team and all the guys who work so hard.”
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