MORE: Can anyone stop No. 78? | Best quotes from 2018 Media Tour
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Preseason stomach butterflies are a thing of the past for Martin Truex Jr. Winning a breakthrough Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship last season went a long way toward clearing up any anxiety.
“Complete opposite,” Truex said Wednesday, the closing day of the NASCAR Media Tour hosted by Charlotte Motor Speedway. “I feel zero pressure … at all. I feel nothing.”
The 2017 champ will open his title defense next month at Daytona International Speedway in the two-weekend build-up to the season-opening Daytona 500 (Feb. 18, 2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM).
Truex roared to his first series crown with a convincing victory in the Homestead-Miami Speedway finale last November, touching off a whirlwind offseason celebration full of appearances and commemorations. Those festivities capped off an eight-win season of dominance by the Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Toyota team.
RELATED: Martin Truex Jr. 2017 season recap
Such a performance will be tough to match in 2018, but Truex said he’s upbeat about the prospects.
“I’m so confident, honestly, I really feel like we can go and start the season right where we left off. Just pick up where we left off and continue as a team as we’ve done in the last couple years. We know what to work on, and we’re just going to keep going down that road and hopefully have more success, but you never know.
“So we’ll just have to see how it all goes, but I’m not feeling any pressure. I’m not anxious at all, and I’ll be ready when I get to Daytona.”