Martin Truex Jr.’s consecutive starts streak to come to an end

With Martin Truex Jr. not participating this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the former NASCAR Cup Series champion’s consecutive starts streak will come to an end at 685 straight races.

Spanning nearly two decades, Truex has not missed a Cup Series race since the start of the 2006 Daytona 500, his rookie season.

All-time, Truex will have the sixth-longest streak in NASCAR history, behind five NASCAR Hall-of-Famers. However, the Daytona 500 will not be Truex’s final start in the series.

When asked after he crashed out of the Daytona 500 if he will be seen behind the wheel of a NASCAR racecar, Truex said yes but “Just don’t know when or where or what. We will see.”

Racing from 1992 to 2015, Jeff Gordon holds the all-time record at 797 starts. Prior to Gordon, Ricky Rudd held the mark at 788 starts when he stepped away from full-time racing in 2005.

Kevin Harvick is ranked third all-time with 784 starts, retiring at the end of 2023. Bobby Labonte (704) and Rusty Wallace (697) round out the Top-5 on the list. 

The torch will pass to Joey Logano, who has started every race since the 2009 Daytona 500. His streak of 577 starts ranks the three-time champion 15th all-time.

If Logano can continue to not miss a race, he could catch Harvick and Rudd’s streak by 2030 and Gordon by 2031.

Additionally, 2012 series champion Brad Keselowski has the second-longest consecutive starts streak with 545 races, competing in every Cup Series race since the 2009 Fall Talladega race at 545 starts (17th all-time).

All-time Consecutive Starts Streaks (As of 2025 Daytona 500)

Jeff Gordon – 797
Ricky Rudd – 788 
Kevin Harvick – 784
Bobby Labonte – 704
Rusty Wallace – 697 
Martin Truex Jr. – 685
Jimmie Johnson – 663
Terry Labonte – 655 
Ryan Newman – 649
Dale Earnhardt – 648
Jeff Burton – 628
Mark Martin – 621
Jamie McMurray – 581
Ken Schrader – 579 
Joey Logano – 577
Matt Kenseth – 571
Brad Keselowski – 545
Clint Bowyer – 540
Kasey Kahne – 529
Tony Stewart – 521
Richard Petty – 513
Greg Biffle – 501

Bold indicates active NASCAR Cup Series driver.