Martin Truex Jr. has a team for his 2025 Daytona 500 attempt.
Tricon Garage will field the No. 56 car for Truex as the NASCAR Truck Series team competes in its first Cup Series race. Truex, 43, retired from full-time racing at the end of the 2024 Cup Series season but had said he wanted to race the next Daytona 500.
The car will come from an alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, the team Truex has driven for since the start of the 2019 season. JGR was unable to field a car for Truex because it is on the limit of four NASCAR teams . 23XI Racing has been rumored to be a potential race for Truex.
Instead, the team owned by former Cup Series driver David Gilliland will handle Truex’s entry. Truex will also have Cole Pearn as crew chief. The two worked together at Furniture Row Motorsports and JGR before Pearn retired from NASCAR. Pearn was Truex’s crew chief when Truex won the 2017 Cup Series title at FRM with eight wins and 26 top 10s during the 36-race season.
Truex will be sponsored by longtime sponsor Bass Pro Shops. Bass Pro sponsored Truex early in his career at Dale Earnhardt, Inc., before also sponsoring him at JGR.
“It will be a really good deal to be able to work with Cole and have number 56 again,” Truex Jr. said in a statement. “I really appreciate everyone at Bass Pro Shops, Tricon and Toyota helping to organize this to go have fun, and I can’t think of a better time to go win the prize for (Bass Pro founder ) Johnny Morris.”
Truex finished 10th in 2024 despite going winless in his final full-time season. Truex has 32 of his 34 career victories from 2015 to 2023 at Front Row and JGR. The number 56 on Truex’s car this season is the same number Truex had at Michael Waltrip Racing from 2010 to 2013. Truex scored the second victory of his career in 2013, but was quickly out of the race after his sponsor NAPA left MWR because of a race manipulation scandal during the final race of the regular season. Departure from NAPA led Truex to join FRM, where he was 24th in 2014 before finishing fourth in the standings in 2015.
Tricon’s entry is officially the 42nd car for 40 spots in the Daytona 500 after JR Motorsports announced Wednesday that it would field a car for Justin Allgaier. With 36 spots already guaranteed to the rental cars, Truex will have to qualify for the Daytona 500 via his qualifying speed or his finishing position in the Duel qualifying races.
