Monday, September 18, 2017

Double Dare! Martin Truex Jr. Slimes The Field, Winning Tales Of The Turtles 400 | Nickelodeon

Official Chicagoland Speedway Press Release via ChicagoLandSpeedway.com:

Double Dare! Martin Truex Jr. Slimes The Field, Winning Turtles 400!


Truex goes back-to-back at the Magnificent Mile and a Half


JOLIET, Ill. (September 17, 2017) – Back-to-back? More like Double Dare!


Martin Truex Jr. followed up his 2016 trip to Chicagoland Speedway Victory Lane with yet another this year, dominating late and winning the Tales of the Turtles 400. His reward was a slime shower as he hopped out of his No. 78 Furniture Row Toyota.

A year earlier, he used a late-race restart to top the field in overtime. This year, he led the final 55 laps and shredded the competition.

Truex’s fifth victory of the season, and the 12th of his career was hardly a cakewalk, even though the driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota took the checkered flag 7.179 seconds ahead of runner-up Chase Elliott.

In earning automatic advancement to the Round of 8, Truex had to overcome a speeding penalty incurred on a green-flag pit stop on Lap 39 and loose lug nuts that forced him to return to pit road and restart deep in the field after the end of Stage 1.

Though the victory eased Truex’s progress through the NASCAR Playoffs—increasing his playoff point total to 58—the winning driver didn’t consider it a statement to his fellow competitors.

“I don’t care much about statements,” Truex said. “I’m just having fun. I’m proud of our pit crew for doing what they did and everyone on this team. It’s important to come here and not let the pressure get to you, and I think we did a good job of that.

“Every time you go to Victory Lane, it’s special. There’s just so many people to thank. I’m kind of speechless, but (team owner) Barney (Visser), and everyone at TRD (Toyota Racing Development) in Costa Mesa building great engines and TRD Salisbury – (sponsors) Bass Pro, Tracker Boats – just everyone, thank you so much. It’s a dream come true, and we’re having the time of our lives.”



Playoff drivers claimed the top six positions in the final running order. Kevin Harvick was at or near the front all afternoon and ran third. Denny Hamlin was fourth, followed by Kyle Larson and Brad Keselowski.

Behind Joey Logano, who missed the Playoffs, seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson soldiered home in eighth in a No. 48 Chevrolet that lacked the speed to compete with the contenders. Playoff drivers Matt Kenseth, Jamie McMurray and Ryan Blaney claimed positions nine through 11, respectively.

Elliott was pleased with his best run since Michigan in June. His 42 laps led were Elliott’s most since he was out front for 106 circuits at Phoenix in March. But the driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet couldn’t challenge Truex, who led 77 laps and was pulling away at the finish.

“Obviously, it would have been great to battle with Martin a little bit more,” Elliott said. “We didn't have anything for him. (But) from where we've been to where we ran today was a major, major step in the right direction, frankly where we need to be, where we deserve to be, to the potential we can run.”

Truex had the speed to overcome his problems on pit road. Others weren’t at fortunate. Polesitter Kyle Busch, who won the first stage handily, caught a double whammy after taking the green / checkered flag at the end of the first 80-lap segment. Eight laps after a restart on Lap 88, Busch returned to pit road because of a loose wheel. On the stop, one of his crewman—from the crew he had acquired from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Daniel Suarez’s team to start the Playoffs—was flagged for stepping over the wall too soon.

Busch served a pass-through penalty under green, never got back to the lead lap and finished 15th in one of the fastest cars in the race.

But Busch’s travails paled in comparison with those of Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who scraped the wall early, incurred a penalty for a commitment line violation and finished 25th, deepest in the field of all the playoff drivers.

Kasey Kahne simply lacked speed. He ran 21st, three laps down and put himself in dire peril of elimination after the Round of 16.

Kurt Busch, who had shown a decided uptick in performance of late, pitted on Lap 200 with a vibration shaking his No. 41 Ford and promptly incurred a pit road speeding penalty. The Daytona 500 winner finished a disappointing 19th, two laps down and will head for next Sunday’s race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with ground to make up.

Austin Dillon sped on pit road on the same lap Truex was busted but couldn’t overcome the mistake. He finished 16th in the No. 3 Richard Childress racing Chevrolet, seven spots ahead of teammate Ryan Newman, who ended the race three laps in arrears.

Notes: Kurt Busch, Stenhouse, Kahne and Newman are the four drivers outside the Playoff bubble heading to New Hampshire ... Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 17th, one lap down, in his final run at Chicagoland Speedway in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race - Tales of the Turtles 400
Chicagoland Speedway
Joliet, Illinois
Sunday, September 17, 2017

               1. (3) Martin Truex Jr. (P), Toyota, 267.
               2. (8) Chase Elliott (P), Chevrolet, 267.
               3. (4) Kevin Harvick (P), Ford, 267.
               4. (2) Denny Hamlin (P), Toyota, 267.
               5. (6) Kyle Larson (P), Chevrolet, 267.
               6. (5) Brad Keselowski (P), Ford, 267.
               7. (7) Joey Logano, Ford, 267.
               8. (14) Jimmie Johnson (P), Chevrolet, 267.
               9. (10) Matt Kenseth (P), Toyota, 267.
               10. (19) Jamie McMurray (P), Chevrolet, 267.
               11. (12) Ryan Blaney (P), Ford, 267.
               12. (13) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, 267.
               13. (11) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 266.
               14. (28) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 266.
               15. (1) Kyle Busch (P), Toyota, 266.
               16. (9) Austin Dillon (P), Chevrolet, 266.
               17. (20) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 266.
               18. (22) Danica Patrick, Ford, 265.
               19. (17) Kurt Busch (P), Ford, 265.
               20. (27) Landon Cassill, Ford, 265.
               21. (25) Kasey Kahne (P), Chevrolet, 264.
               22. (26) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 264.
               23. (16) Ryan Newman (P), Chevrolet, 264.
               24. (21) Aric Almirola, Ford, 264.
               25. (15) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (P), Ford, 263.
               26. (29) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 263.
               27. (18) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 263.
               28. (23) Ty Dillon #, Chevrolet, 262.
               29. (31) David Ragan, Ford, 262.
               30. (30) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 262.
               31. (32) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 261.
               32. (34) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 259.
               33. (24) Erik Jones #, Toyota, 259.
               34. (37) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 258.
               35. (35) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 257.
               36. (33) Corey LaJoie #, Toyota, 256.
               37. (40) * Brett Moffitt(i), Toyota, 255.
               38. (36) * Gray Gaulding #, Toyota, 254.
               39. (38) * Timmy Hill(i), Chevrolet, 254.
               40. (39) * Ray Black II(i), Chevrolet, 251.

Average Speed of Race Winner: 145.401 mph.

Time of Race: 2 Hrs, 45 Mins, 16 Secs. Margin of Victory: 7.179 Seconds.

Caution Flags: 4 for 21 laps.

Lead Changes: 12 among 7 drivers.

Lap Leaders: Kyle Busch (P) 1-44; L. Cassill 45-46; Kyle Busch (P) 47-87; K. Harvick (P) 88-122; B. Keselowski (P) 123; D. Hamlin (P) 124; C. Elliott (P) 125-162; K. Harvick (P) 163; C. Elliott (P) 164-167; K. Harvick (P) 168-189; M. Truex Jr. (P) 190-211; K. Harvick (P) 212; M. Truex Jr. (P) 213-267.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Kyle Busch (P) 2 times for 85 laps; M. Truex Jr. (P) 2 times for 77 laps; K. Harvick (P) 4 times for 59 laps; C. Elliott (P) 2 times for 42 laps; L. Cassill 1 time for 2 laps; B. Keselowski (P) 1 time for 1 lap; D. Hamlin (P) 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 18,4,24,11,22,2,20,42,19,78

Stage #2 Top Ten: 24,4,78,42,2,11,22,41,20,1

--30--

Nickelodeon treated the whole Furniture Row Racing crew to a slime shower during the teams victory lane celebration.

“It feels great, the best feeling in the world,” said an elated Truex just before he got slimed in Victory Lane by Nickelodeon’s Shaboozinator. “Not just the playoffs, but winning races and doing it the way we’re doing it right now. I’m just blessed to be here and I have the best team in the whole world and I love those guys. I’m glad I’m driving for them and glad we’re having success.”

"Yeah, I spent about five minutes in the bathroom washing my hands and face trying to get the green stuff off," Truex said afterward with a smile. "I remember watching Nickelodeon as a kid and that show with an obstacle course thing where they got slimed.

"It's a lot funnier to watch people get slimed than it is to get slimed. But it was definitely worth it to get that after the race."

The race was started by Mark Epstein, Honorary Starter/Wave Green Flag, Senior VP of Nickelodeon Partner Marketing.

Tune into NickSports' Tales Of The Turtles 400 night, featuring a brand-new 90-minute Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles special, "Raphael: Mutant Apocalypse", Friday, September 22nd from 9:00pm on Nicktoons!

Also, via SBNation.com:

Martin Truex Jr. gets slimed after winning Nickelodeon-sponsored NASCAR race at Chicagoland

Win a race sponsored by Nickelodeon and a slime bath awaits you in victory lane.


Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images

The slime is green, nontoxic, edible, and synonymous with Nickelodeon, the sponsor of the NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway through its Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise.

And fittingly, when Martin Truex Jr. rallied to win the Tales of the Turtles 400 on Sunday, there was a special honor awaiting him in victory lane. Following the obligatory television and radio interviews, Truex and his Furniture Row Racing team were slimed afterward with between 55 and 75 gallons of the green liquid using a specially crafted device called the Shaboozinator.

Nickelodeon has been the title sponsor of NASCAR races on-and-off for the past several years, but the idea to slime a race winner only came about early this year when Nickelodeon executives wanted a fun way to celebrate. After some convincing of NASCAR and its drivers and teams, Nickelodeon was given the go-ahead. And Truex didn’t seem to mind, considering the win advanced him to the second round of the Cup Series playoffs.


--Ends--

Also, via The Denver Post:

Martin Truex Jr. gets slimed in victory lane celebration

Truex was doused green slime after his fifth win of the season

Things got a little crazy after Martin Truex Jr.’s victory Sunday in NASCAR’s playoff opener at Chicagoland Speedway.

Truex, who drives the No. 78 car for Denver’s Furniture Row Racing, was doused green slime after his fifth win of the season, and first of this year’s playoffs.

Truex’s longtime girlfriend, Sherry Pollex, was by his side in victory lane and stepped away from the slime.

He might have other drivers green with envy — but it was Truex who was slimed in the colored goop made famous by Nickelodeon as part of the race sponsorship. The Furniture Row Racing crew was bathed in slime and champagne during a raucous victory lane celebration.


--Ends--


Getty Images for NASCAR




Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane as he gets "slimed" after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tales of the Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 17, 2017 in Joliet, Illinois.

Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane as he gets "slimed" after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tales of the Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 17, 2017 in Joliet, Illinois.

Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, and his team celebrate in Victory Lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tales of the Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 17, 2017 in Joliet, Illinois.

Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tales of the Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 17, 2017 in Joliet, Illinois.

Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane as he gets "slimed" after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tales of the Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 17, 2017 in Joliet, Illinois.

Martin Truex Jr. celebrates with his crew in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Monster Energy Series auto race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017.

Martin Truex Jr. celebrates with his crew in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Monster Energy Series auto race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017.

Martin Truex Jr. celebrates with his crew in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Monster Energy Series auto race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017.

Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Tales of the Turtles 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 17, 2017 in Joliet, Illinois.

Martin Truex Jr. celebrates with his crew in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Monster Energy Series auto race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Martin Truex Jr. celebrates as he holds the trophy in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Monster Energy Series auto race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)























Wow 😳 that was fast, @bubbawallace! #NASCAR #PitStop

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#TMNT + #NASCAR = #AWESOME! Race day is finally here! #TURTLES400

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Swipe 👉 to check out @jearnhardt's BeBop and Rocksteady fire suit 👌#TURTLES400 #NASCAR

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More Nick: Nickelodeon Reimagines The Iconic "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" In All-New 2D Animated Series, "Rise Of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"!

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