‘Overdue celebration’
LONG POND – Martin Truex Jr. slapped the top of his No. 78 Chevrolet, thrust his right fist toward the sky and bounded straight into his girlfriend’s arms.
They hugged, kissed and Truex lifted her into the air.
Truex has stood by Sherry Pollex’s side through her fight with ovarian cancer. Pollex was strong for Truex when his career was in flux following a scandal that cost him a shot at a championship and his ride.
Sunday at Pocono Raceway, they were set for an overdue celebration.
Truex led the most laps for the fourth straight race, only this time he was in front on the one that mattered most, breaking through for his first Sprint Cup victory since 2013.
“This is easily the biggest win of my career,” Truex said.
Truex won the race and NASCAR’s version of a popularity contest in victory lane. Rival drivers, owners, crew members popped by for high-fives and congratulatory messages. Dale Earnhardt Jr. hugged Pollex. Jimmie Johnson fist-bumped Truex.
“He’s had more to overcome personally and professionally than probably anybody sitting in that seat right now,” Johnson said.
Truex and Pollex, a couple since 2005, endured their share of personal and professional heartache over the last 18 months. Pollex, was diagnosed with cancer last summer and she had various organs removed, including her ovaries, fallopian tubes and part of her stomach.
Furniture Row owner Barney Visser told Truex he could sit out the rest of the season following Pollex’s diagnosis and still keep his ride for 2015. Truex, though greatly appreciative, declined the offer. Truex found the track therapeutic and kept him focused on something other than her disease.
But he was always a steady support system for Pollex.
“She showed me what she was made of,” Truex said.
Pollex tweeted a selfie with Truex and the Pocono trophy from victory lane that said, “Chemo Monday victory lane Sunday.”
“It never gets any better than this,” Truex said. “It takes time to heal things, especially with what Sherry and I went through. This makes you forget all about it. Sherry’s here healthy and she’s as excited as I am.”
Truex took another hit when his grandmother, Roberta, died Wednesday in the family hometown of Mayetta, N.J.
“I think the racing Gods were hanging out with my grandma today,” Truex said.
Truex dominated off late restarts down the stretch to snap a 69-race winless streak.
Truex’s Furniture Row Racing team had brought the same car to the track each of the last three weeks, with smashing results. Truex didn’t win but he led the most laps at Kansas (95), Charlotte (131) and Dover (131). He added 97 more at Pocono.
Kevin Harvick was second, followed by Johnson, Joey Logano and Kurt Busch.
F1 leader wins Canadian GP: Lewis Hamilton has won the Canadian Grand Prix.
It’s the fourth win of the year for the Hamilton. He leads the Formula One standings in a quest for his second straight world championship. It’s also Hamilton’s fourth victory at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Montreal’s Isle Notre-Dame, where he earned his first Grand Prix win in 2007.
Nico Rosberg was second. The two Mercedes teammates started on the front row and were never threatened. Mercedes has won six of the seven races in the Formula One series this year.
Valtteri Bottas was third, giving Williams its first appearance on the podium all season. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastien Vettel were fourth and fifth.
Hamilton led from the pole to the checkered flag with no threat from anyone except his Mercedes teammate. Hamilton’s problems in the previous race were also internal: A late strategic decision by his team cost him a chance at a fourth victory of the year.
He made up for it the next chance he got.
Dixon dominates crash-free Indy race: Scott Dixon had a dominating run at Texas, winning by 7.8 seconds over teammate Tony Kanaan on Saturday night in the fastest IndyCar Series race ever at the track.
Dixon led 97 of the 248 laps in a race that had only two cautions. His second win of the season came with an average speed of 191.940 mph
After anxiety about how the cars would handle on the high-speed, high-banked Texas track with the new aero kits, especially after three Chevrolets went airborne during practice for the Indianapolis 500, there were no accidents.
Driving the No. 9 Chevrolet for Chip Ganassi Racing, Dixon got his 37th career win. The New Zealander also won in 2008 at Texas, which has now hosted 27 IndyCar races.
Team Penske drivers Helio Castroneves and Juan Pablo Montoya finished third and fourth, respectively. Fifth-place Marco Andretti was the highest-finishing Honda.