After the Daytona 500, Corey LaJoie was brimming with confidence. Spire Motorsports appeared in good form as he finished the race in P4. As the season progressed, it became evident that that performance was a one-off. LaJoie has failed to finish in the top 10 ever since the opening race of the season. He recently admitted to making too many mistakes behind the wheel on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio.
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The driver of the #7 Chevy believes that he should be finishing consistently in the top 15. However, that hasn’t been the case at all. LaJoie’s average finish this season so far is 23.35. Last season it was 20.78. While the veteran iterated that a substantial improvement was a bit far-fetched given their resources, a deterioration is not what anyone expected.
Plenty of work to do to finish this year strong, but really excited to get the chance to work with a championship winning guy in Rodney next season. Rodney’s credentials speak for themselves. https://t.co/yZsgrru65t
— Corey LaJoie (@CoreyLaJoie) July 9, 2024
“I’ve made too many mistakes behind the wheel,” he said. “I think we haven’t executed well, whether it’s me behind the wheel or…we could run top 18, top 10 every week last year, and right now that’s a good week for us. We need to get back on track.”
At the start of the season, LaJoie said that getting close to the playoff fight would have been a success. The reality has been far from it. The driver of the #7 car currently sits at P31 on the points table.
LaJoie will have one of the greatest crew chiefs from 2025
Next season LaJoie will have one of the great minds of the sport in his corner. Rodney Childers has been confirmed as LaJoie’s crew chief starting in 2025. The Cup Series-winning crew chief was a part of Stewart-Haas Racing until they announced its dissolution. The veteran had his eye on Spire Motorsports for a while as well.
“Spire continues to invest in the people within the team and they seek out good people to add depth to an already strong group. Corey (LaJoie) is a veteran of the sport and I think we have a tremendous opportunity in front of us,” he said.
It remains to be seen how this partnership works out in the future, considering the vast experience that Childress brings to the team.
