Martin Truex, Jr. made his second NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series start driving in this past weekend’s AAA Insurance 200 at Michigan International Speedway. The No. 51 Bowen Family Homes Chevrolet for Billy Ballew Motorsports started 36th on the grid, moved to as high as fifth and in contention for a top-10 finish before a cut tire relegated them to a 34th place finish.

Truex, Jr. qualified a very loose Silverado in 33rd position, but due to NASCAR’s new qualifying procedures, lined up in the final spot, alongside teammate Kyle Krisiloff, for the 100-lap event. By the first caution on lap seven, Truex, Jr. had moved up several spots but decided to bring the No. 51 Bowen Family Homes Chevrolet down pit road for some chassis adjustments. He restarted in 29th place and when the caution came back out on lap 11, Truex, Jr. radioed into crew chief Richie Wauters that the changes “definitely helped a lot.”

The No. 51 restarted in 24th place, by virtue of several competitors pitting this time around. Truex, Jr. made his second pit stop on lap 37 during the third caution. Truex, Jr. was still loose so Wauters called for more adjustments, including wedge, track bar and air pressure changes. Truex, Jr. restarted in 11th place on lap 39. Eleven laps later, the No. 51 Bowen Family Homes Chevy was up to the top-10, riding in eighth position.

When the fourth caution came on lap 68, Truex, Jr. brought the No. 51 down pit road to the attention of his pit crew. They changed four tires, added fuel and took some wedge out. Truex, Jr. was complaining that he had no grip left with his current tires. Entering pit road in 10th place, a quickly-executed stop put Truex, Jr. in fifth position for the restart on lap 72.

With fresher tires, Truex, Jr. was feeling anxious to make his way up to the front. It only cost him a couple spots, but he knew he tried to make his move too quickly. “She’ll go on the bottom with new tires,” Truex, Jr. said on the radio. “I haven’t found out how far I can drive her sideways, but I’m sure I will before this is over. I should’ve waited. I was way too loose too fast. The right rear got hot real quick. I’ll be smarter this time.”

Smarter, maybe, but the truck was just too loose. He drifted back to ninth position when on lap 96, with four laps remaining, Truex, Jr. cut down a left rear tire which sent him spinning around. Contact from the No. 13 of Kerry Earnhardt ended the day for the No. 51 Bowen Family Homes Chevrolet, placing the second entry for Billy Ballew Motorsports in 34th position.

“It was a lot of fun,” said Truex, Jr. following the race. “I could get up front on the restarts and I could go real fast for a lap or two. The truck was real, real loose all day. The same thing we’ve been fighting all weekend. But we had a lot of fun out there and I tried to do a good job for them guys. We were looking at getting a top-10 with a truck that wasn’t very good. Richie and the guys never gave up. They made huge, huge adjustments from the time the race started till the end and then got ran into there at the end and got a left rear flat. I got to thank Billy Ballew and Richie Wauters and all the guys for letting me do it and I wish we could have done a little better.”