Spire Motorsports is an American professional stock car racing team. The organization competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
The company was founded in 2018 by professional management executives Jeff Dickerson and T. J. Puchyr as a subsidiary of their Spire Sports + Entertainment agency after purchasing an entry "charter" from Furniture Row Racing, beginning competition for the 2019 season. The team is considered by the Associated Press' Jenna Fryer to have helped "jump-start" a "dormant" charter system; charter values increased from about $6 million to $40 million USD in the period from 2018–2024. Additionally, the team would purchase the racing assets of Truck Series team Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2023. On track, the team would score their first Cup win in 2019 with driver Justin Haley. In 2024, the organization restructured, with both Spire Motorsports and SS+E becoming subsidiaries of Dickerson's Spire Holdings, and Puchyr selling his shares to financial services executive Dan Towriss, the CEO of TWG Motorsports.
In the Cup Series, the team fields three Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 teams: the No. 7 for Daniel Suárez, the No. 71 for Michael McDowell, and the No. 77 for Carson Hocevar. In the Truck Series, the team fields two Chevrolet Silverados: the No. 7 and No. 77.
History
On December 4, 2018, Spire Sports + Entertainment announced they purchased their charter from the now-defunct Furniture Row Racing. At the same time, the team announced they will use the No. 77 and field Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s. FRR President Joe Garone joined the team to serve the same position.
The team, in its first year of operation, operated in the same shop as Premium Motorsports as part of an alliance with Premium owner Jay Robinson. However, Premium was sold to Rick Ware Racing in 2020, and the team operated out of the RWR shop until season's end. On August 11, 2020, Spire Motorsports purchased the assets of Leavine Family Racing, allowing them to expand to a two-car operation in 2021. Following the acquisition, the team moved their headquarters from Mooresville to the former shop of AK Racing in Concord, North Carolina. On October 7, it was announced that Spire Motorsports had secured a third charter which would be leased to Trackhouse Racing for the 2021 season. On December 10, it was reported that NASCAR on NBC analyst and former Hendrick Motorsports crew chief Steve Letarte will serve as a consultant for the team.
On June 18, 2021, it was announced that Spire had sold two charters (for the No. 77, and the one leased to Trackhouse Racing) to Kaulig Racing for the 2022 season. In the announcement, Spire's co-owners said, "We will continue to field the No. 7 with Corey LaJoie as a chartered entry in 2022. We remain committed to NASCAR and the Cup Series and we will continue to look for opportunities to grow and compete in the future." In 2022, Spire purchased Rick Ware Racing's No. 53 charter for the No. 77.
On September 16, 2023, Spire purchased Live Fast Motorsports charter for 40 million to field a third team in 2024. Less than two weeks later, on September 27, Spire agreed to purchase the assets of NASCAR Truck Series team Kyle Busch Motorsports. On December 4, former Chip Ganassi Racing COO Doug Duchardt was named President of Spire Motorsports.
Restructuring
On November 25, 2024, former RFK Racing crew chief Matt McCall was named director of vehicle performance, while former Stewart–Haas Racing engineer Dax Gerringer was named technical director. On the same day, it was revealed through the launch of the Cadillac Formula 1 Team that Spire (which had carried sponsorship from related brands Gainbridge and Delaware Life throughout the season) was "owned and operated" by TWG Global, a company founded by billionaire Mark Walter. Among Walter's other sports properties at the time were the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Professional Women's Hockey League, and a minority share of Chelsea F.C.
Subsequent media reports would confirm Spire's ownership group as consisting of co-founder Jeff Dickerson and Dan Towriss, the CEO of TWG Motorsports, a subsidiary of TWG Global launched to operate its various motorsports properties (which, including Spire and Cadillac F1, also included Andretti Global and Wayne Taylor Racing). In June 2025, it was confirmed that Puchyr had sold his shares to Towriss in 2024, and had spent 2025 as a consultant for the Rick Ware Racing and Legacy Motor Club teams. In a March 2026 court filing, Dickerson confirmed that TWG Motorsports owns "a majority stake" in Spire.
In October 2025, Andretti Global COO Rob Edwards had transitioned to Chief Performance Officer (CPO) of TWG Motorsports, adding TWG's other racing series, including NASCAR, to his responsibilities.
Cup Series Car No. 7 history Corey LaJoie (2021–2024)
On November 30, 2020, Spire Motorsports announced that Corey LaJoie signed a multi-year agreement with the team starting in 2021. In addition, the team selected the No. 7 with permission from Tommy Baldwin Racing to pay tribute to Alan Kulwicki and Geoff Bodine.
LaJoie drove the No. 7 to a ninth-place finish at the 2021 Daytona 500. Following the season opener, however, the team was unable to break into the top 20 until the race at COTA, where LaJoie finished 20th. Josh Berry drove the No. 7 at Michigan, as LaJoie was sidelined in accordance with team and COVID-19 protocols. LaJoie finished the season 29th in points.
On March 15, 2022, crew chief Ryan Sparks was suspended for four races due to a tire and wheel loss during the 2022 Ruoff Mortgage 500 at Phoenix. At Atlanta, LaJoie led a career-best nineteen laps and was on his way to claiming his first career win with two laps to go when Chase Elliott overtook him and blocked him on the high side, causing him to brush the wall and spin before colliding with Kurt Busch and finishing the race in 21st place.
LaJoie started the 2023 season with a 16th-place finish at the 2023 Daytona 500. He showed huge improvement over the past season with more consistent top-twenty and top-thirty finishes. On May 30, LaJoie was announced as the substitute driver of the Hendrick Motorsports No. 9 at Gateway after Chase Elliott was suspended for one race for intentionally wrecking Denny Hamlin at Charlotte. Carson Hocevar filled in for the No. 7, making his Cup Series debut.
LaJoie started the 2024 season with a fourth place finish at the 2024 Daytona 500.
On July 9, 2024, Spire Motorsports announced that Rodney Childers would replace Sparks as the No. 7's crew chief in 2025 while Sparks would be promoted to competition director. On July 25, LaJoie announced he was parting ways with Spire at the end of the 2024 season.
Justin Haley (2024–2025)
On September 20, 2024, it was announced that LaJoie would move to the Rick Ware Racing No. 51, while Justin Haley would replace him in the No. 7 for the remainder of the 2024 season starting with Kansas, as well as full-time in 2025. On April 23, 2025, Spire Motorsports announced that Childers would be parting ways, effective immediately. The following day, Sparks returned to his former role as crew chief in the No. 7 car while also continuing to be the competition director.
On October 14, 2025, Spire announced that the team and Haley would part ways after the 2025 season.
Daniel Suárez (2026)
On October 22, 2025, it was announced that Daniel Suárez will replace Haley in the No. 7 car in 2026. He started the season with a 13th place finish at the Daytona 500. Suárez scored his first win with Spire Motorsports at a rain-shortened Coca-Cola 600.
Car No. 7 results Year Driver No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 Pts 2021 Corey LaJoie 7 Chevy DAY9 DRC31 HOM36 LVS37 PHO27 ATL29 BRI38 MAR37 RCH21 TAL22 KAN27 DAR22 DOV26 COA20 CLT19 SON18 NSH15 POC36 POC23 ROA21 ATL22 NHA23 GLN24 IRC16 DAY16 DAR15 RCH29 BRI26 LVS30 TAL22 ROV35 TEX20 KAN25 MAR21 PHO32 29th 459 Josh Berry MCH26 2022 Corey LaJoie DAY14 CAL28 LVS15 PHO36 ATL5 COA36 RCH31 MAR32 BRD19 TAL14 DOV18 DAR35 KAN19 CLT35 GTW36 SON34 NSH20 ROA34 ATL21 NHA32 POC19 IRC18 MCH19 RCH28 GLN27 DAY30 DAR24 KAN33 BRI15 TEX14 TAL35 ROV12 LVS24 HOM23 MAR21 PHO18 32nd 466 2023 DAY16 CAL14 LVS20 PHO26 ATL4 COA11 RCH21 BRD30 MAR26 TAL25 DOV14 KAN20 DAR24 CLT17 SON20 NSH20 CSC14 ATL31 NHA33 POC27 RCH32 MCH15 IRC29 GLN20 DAY10 DAR22 KAN22 BRI25 TEX26 TAL4 ROV17 LVS19 HOM20 MAR22 PHO31 26th 588 Carson Hocevar GTW36 2024 Corey LaJoie DAY4 ATL13 LVS32 PHO33 BRI21 COA24 RCH36 MAR32 TEX22 TAL18 DOV21 KAN26 DAR16 CLT35 GTW32 SON11 IOW21 NHA23 NSH20 CSC27 POC19 IND14 RCH34 MCH32 DAY34 DAR9 ATL15 GLN8 BRI3632nd504 Justin Haley KAN33 TAL7 ROV26 LVS17 HOM34 MAR29 PHO28 2025 DAY19 ATL24 COA 16 PHO34 LVS14 HOM10 MAR28 DAR24 BRI13 TAL25 TEX15 KAN31 CLT30 NSH32 MCH21 MXC24 POC19 ATL23 CSC22 SON15 DOV17 IND11 IOW23 GLN27 RCH37 DAY3 DAR27 GTW28 BRI13 NHA33 KAN18ROV17 LVS27 TAL39 MAR19 PHO14 31st 559 2026 Daniel Suárez DAY ATL COA PHO LVS DAR MAR BRI KAN TAL TEX GLN CLT NSH MCH POC COR SON CHI ATL NWS IND IOW RCH NHA DAY DAR GTW BRI KAN LVSCLTPHOTALMARHOM
Car No. 71 history Zane Smith (2024)
During the same announcement on September 16, 2023, when Spire purchased Live Fast Motorsports' charter, Zane Smith was announced as the driver of Spire's third team in 2024 as a partnership with Trackhouse Racing. Smith signed a multi-year deal with Trackhouse and was supposed to drive the Spire car until he moved to Trackhouse, in a third car, however, in 2024, Trackhouse terminated the agreement, leaving Smith without a ride for 2025.
Michael McDowell (2025–present)
On May 8, 2024, Michael McDowell signed a multi-year deal to drive the No. 71 starting in 2025. On March 15, 2025, McDowell scored Spire's first ever Cup Series pole position for the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
McDowell continued for the 2026 season.
Car No. 71 results Year Driver No. Make 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 Pts 2024 Zane Smith 71 Chevy DAY13 ATL35 LVS36 PHO29 BRI36 COA19 RCH35 MAR31 TEX26 TAL29 DOV24 KAN29 DAR35 CLT33 GTW19 SON16 IOW31 NHA30 NSH2 CSC17 POC29 IND17 RCH23 MCH 7 DAY13 DAR23 ATL21 GLN5 BRI16 KAN10 TAL21 ROV19 LVS16 HOM30 MAR21 PHO39 31st 505 2025 Michael McDowell DAY11 ATL13 COA 11 PHO27 LVS16 HOM20 MAR12 DAR29 BRI30 TAL11 TEX26 KAN23 CLT7 NSH21 MCH30 MXC5 POC35 ATL18 CSC32* SON4 DOV13IND30 IOW27 GLN19 RCH17 DAY12 DAR33 GTW14 BRI17 NHA8 KAN14 ROV5 LVS16 TAL17 MAR24 PHO8 22nd 734 2026 DAY ATL COA PHO LVS DAR MAR BRI KAN TAL TEX GLN CLT NSH MCH POC COR SON CHI ATL NWS IND IOW RCH NHA DAY DAR GTW BRI KAN LVSCLTPHOTALMARHOM
Car No. 77 history Multiple drivers (2019–2022)
Spire formed a partnership with Chip Ganassi Racing to field the No. 40 for Jamie McMurray at the 2019 Daytona 500, using the newly-acquired No. 77 charter to effectively renumber it to the No. 40 for a one-off and guarantee it qualified for the race. McMurray ended up with a 22nd place finish at the race after being caught in "The Big One".
In January 2019, Quin Houff signed with Spire for a part-time schedule in the No. 77 in 2019 starting at Phoenix Raceway. Prior to Houff's debut, Garrett Smithley and Reed Sorenson drove the car at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway, respectively. Prior to the Atlanta race, car chief Shane Callis was ejected from the track after the No. 77 failed pre-qualifying inspection multiple times. D. J. Kennington joined the team for the Martinsville Speedway race. In April, NASCAR Xfinity Series regular Justin Haley made his Cup debut with the team at Talladega Superspeedway.
On July 7, the team won their first Cup race in their 18th start at the rain-shortened 2019 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona, with Haley behind the wheel. Haley and the team were not eligible for the Cup Series Playoffs but did receive the Daytona winner's check.