The final NASCAR race of the season was significant in a number of ways for drivers up and down the field.
Particularly those at the front fighting for the playoff championship, things intensified at the toughest point in the season.
Completing his final race in the series, Martin Truex Jr was unphased by the prospect of retirement after claiming pole position in Phoenix.
His race didn’t quite go to plan, as he dropped out of contention for victory fairly early on and didn’t have the cutting-edge pace required.
Parker Kligerman says Joey Logano pushed Martin Truex Jr to ‘breaking point’
Sitting in sixth place midway through the second stage of the race, he had been near championship contender Joey Logano on the track.
The two-time champion managed to annoy Truex Jr by not giving him enough room, prompting a radio response from the retiring driver.
NBC Sports analyst and current NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Parker Kilgerman mentioned how every person has a limit to the margin they will give to a rival during the NBC Sports broadcast.
READ MORE: Martin Truex Jr says retirement hasn’t ‘sunk in’ ahead of final NASCAR race in Phoenix
“I can tell you from experience, we do kind of give them a little bit of a break. But everyone has a breaking point. That is the case for Martin Truex Jr that he doesn’t want to give any more.
“You try to give them as much as you can Jeff, but everyone has that breaking point where you’re pushed too far and you think it’s affecting your race too much.
“That’s what he felt Joey Logano was doing and that can be frustrating.”
How Logano attempted to seize Championship 4 initiative
The incident between Logano and Truex Jr happened just one-third of the way into the race – an important portion of the event with stage one completed.
It goes without saying that with 200 laps left to run, there was a long way to go, but Logano was trying to stamp his authority on the race at the time.
It’s probably why he fell short of Truex Jr’s temper, after failing to give his rival enough space and respect on the caution restart.
READ MORE: Joey Logano faces ‘challenge’ after being handed NASCAR Championship 4 penalty at the worst time
It must’ve worked though, because he soon began climbing through the field after that, making his way up to second before the halfway stage of the race.
Truex Jr meanwhile, continued his slide down the pack and ended up ninth at the same time Logano had lifted himself within the top three.